Category Archives: Cruising

*AmaWaterways’ Mekong River cruise takes us deep into the cultures of southern Vietnam and Cambodia (Photo: Courtesy of AmaWaterways)*

by Geri Bain for Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

My 30-year-old-daughter and I are on a week-long AmaWaterways Mekong River cruise. Our journey starts with two pre-cruise days based at the Sofitel Saigon Plaza exploring Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam before setting out on AmaWaterways’ five-star, 64-cabin AmaDara. We have completed the Vietnam portion of our cruise, featured in Part 1, and have crossed the border into Cambodia. Here, in Part 2 of our three-part series, we share highlights from our cruise through Cambodia and our stay in Siem Reap.

On day three of our AmaWaterways Mekong River cruise, we wake up to find our ship docked in Phnom Penh, where we will spend the next two nights. During our time in Vietnam, we anchored mid-river and tendered ashore; we are excited that for the next two nights we are docked right in town near a lively riverside park and can walk or take a tuk tuk (motorized rickshaw-style taxi) to the market, temples and other sites when we are not touring.

*The Royal Palace in Phnom Penh is still used for religious and royal ceremonies ©Geri Bain*

The Royal Palace complex, our first destination in Cambodia, takes our breath away with its gilded storybook Khmer architecture. Cambodia is a constitutional monarchy and this complex is the official royal residence as well as a key religious and educational center. Finn, our guide, explains the religious icons and the meaning woven into the architecture. For example, Nagas, which often take the form of multi-headed semi-divine snakes, are used to form balustrades and climb the steep, slanted roofs of buildings, symbolically connecting earth and the heavens. We learn more at our next stop, the National Museum, where Finn shares important Hindu and Buddhist stories behind the sculptures and bas reliefs on display.

*At the Genocide Museum, we meet one of only seven men known to have survived the Sleng S21Detention Center torture camp © GeriBain*

In the afternoon, we tour Sleng S21 Detention Center, now a Genocide Museum, where AmaWaterways has arranged for us to meet with one of only seven men known to have survived this torture camp. He has written a book about the horrors he’s seen. Our next stop, as it was for many S21 prisoners, is the infamous Choeung Ek Killing Fields, an extermination camp where the inhumanity is even more startling. Here, mass graves labeled with the number of men, women and children they contain and the skull-filled memorial tower are among the shocking things we witness there.

*This Memorial Stupa displays more than 8,000 skulls and the blunt weapons that took their lives at the Choeung Ek Killing Fields © GeriBain*

Most of us were aware of the Khmer Rouge genocide, but the scale and cruelty are unfathomable. It’s believed that at least 1.5 million Cambodians—about a fourth of the population—were murdered from 1975 to 1979 and many more died under the harsh conditions of forced labor camps. It is amazing to realize that most Cambodians alive today either lived through the genocide themselves or have relatives who survived (or perished) during that terror-filled period.

*Khmer dancers come aboard our ship to perform and explain folkloric stories of love and deities told in stylized movements. ©GeriBain*

Our moods lift that evening at a pre-dinner performance by a local Khmer dance troupe, whose stylized hand gestures and movements tell classical and folkloric stories.

*At the Oudong monastery, we chat with two monks who answer questions about their rigorous routine and why they chose to be monks © GeriBain*

The positive spirit carries into our next day at the Oudong monastery. As we enter its impressive prayer hall, awash in brilliant religious paintings, a giant Buddha statue seems to look down benevolently at us. We seat ourselves on the temple floor. Buddhist monks walk in and sit cross-legged facing our group. Before bestowing a blessing on us, one of the monks, in perfect English, answers our questions and tells us about their lives and the importance of blessings in Cambodian life, where more than 93 percent of the population is Buddhist. During the 15-minute blessing ceremony, their chanting resounds hypnotically through the grand temple, drawing to a close with a gentle scattering of lotus flowers.

*Silk worm cocoons are carefully reeled into thread © GeriBain*

Over the next few days, we get a sense of rural and religious life on visits to a number of temples and small villages. Highlights include an ox-cart ride to a small temple, a visit to a school where we pair off with students to practice their English and a stop at “Silk Island” where we are shown the painstaking process of weaving silk fabric, from mulberry trees and silk worms to cocoons. We watch cocoons being “reeled” into thread that is dyed, set into hand looms and woven into iridescent scarfs, ties, and other products.

*Angkor Ban is a rustic, remote village where traditional wooden homes are raised on stilts © GeriBain*

One of my favorite excursions is to Angkor Ban, a small agricultural village where people live in wooden homes raised on stilts, and we are guests of a friendly local couple who show us around their home and talk about their children and grandchildren. Leading us along its dirt roads, Finn points out the offerings families place at the small gilded ancestor shrines set on posts in their front yards, the oxen, tethered or fenced near many of the homes, and the daytime activities, many of which take place in the shady under stories of the stilted houses.

Our last stop is Kampong Cham. We dock next to a riverside park where we see locals picnicking, exercising to music in small groups, and socializing. We are sad that our cruise is coming to an end. One of the things we love about AmaWaterways is that we tour in small “families” and our guides—one for each country—travel on board with us. The continuity helps fosters a deeper understanding of the culture as our guides build on their narratives. It also creates a familial feeling with them and our fellow travelers. Many of us exchange addresses. Marveling at how much we have seen and done, it’s hard to believe we have only been cruising for a week. We leave the AmaDara with a sense of life in the Mekong region that we could never have fathomed on our own.

*Following the Cambodian Royal Guard tradition, the doormen at the Raffles Grand Hotel D’Angkor wear silk pantaloons—a different color for each day of the week. ©GeriBain*

AmaWaterways transports us by bus to Siem Reap, where we check into the Raffles Grand Hotel D’Angkor, a cultural icon that blends French Art Deco architecture with Khmer (Cambodian) art and design. It also showcases ancient Khmer art as well as contemporary Khmer art curated by gallery owner Nat Di Maggio, who offers guided art tours for hotel guests. Other hotel activities include daily monk blessings, morning yoga, and botanical, history, garden and other tours. (www.raffles.com/siem-reap)

*Statues of ancient warriors and other heroes © GeriBain*

Across the street is one of the royal residences of the King Norodom Sihamonia. We stroll through the public Royal Gardens and stop to listen to the prayers at a popular shrine where people come with candles, incense sticks, lotus flowers and other offerings. We return to the hotel in time for afternoon tea—or in my case, the condensed-milk sweetened Cambodian coffee I have come to love—and then head around the corner to the Angkor National Museum which presents a cultural history of the Khmer civilization that proudly conveys how far-reaching and advanced the Khmer Empire once was.

That evening we indulge in a memorable tasting menu of Cambodian specialties, including corn cake with coconut sauce and snow fish with sweet and sour sauce, at the hotel’s gourmet restaurant,1932. The restaurant takes its name from the year the Raffles Grand Hotel D’Angkor opened to satisfy the burgeoning interest in Angkor Wat, just a few miles away. After dinner, we walk to the lively nightlife area, a chic modern area of bars, restaurants and sidewalk cafe-style eateries.

*Angkor Wat’s 12th century temple, featured on Cambodia’s flag, look especially magical at sunrise. ©GeriBain*

We set our alarm for 4 a.m. so we can watch the sun rise over Angkor Wat, a long-standing tradition. Seeing the reddish hues sweeping over the temples and reflected in the huge surrounding moat is well worth early wake-up and we enjoy the generous backpack breakfast Raffles sends with us. We’ve arranged for a private tour, which allows us to go at our own pace and tour several nearby temples, including Banteay Srei. We’re amazed at how well preserved it is – its exquisitely detailed 10th century carvings seem untouched by time.

*We visit at the atmospheric Ta Prohm site, where trees have intertwined with the temple, during the filming of a movie. @GeriBain*

The 800-year-old Ta Prohm Temple, a.k.a “Tomb Raider Temple” feels especially wonderful—not because the site starred in the the 2001 film starring Angelina Jolie—but because climbing around it gives me the feeling that we are explorers discovering something for the first time. Here, tree roots are spreading over and digging into the stone buildings, and I can imagine how archaeologists felt when they first began discovering the many temples in this region.

*After sniffing me with its trunk, an elephant pauses to pose with me on a walk through the Kelen Elephant Forest.*

Before leaving Cambodia, we spend a morning at the Kulen Elephant Forest, where elephants that once worked under cruel conditions at Angkor Wat are protected and lovingly cared for. We notice torn ears and other evidence of their hard past; now they seem happy to be among people. Their handlers show us how to make treats that they eat from our hands and then we stroll with these gentle giants through the forest, watching them interact with each other. We stop at along the way and allow them to sniff us with their trunks as we pet their rough, thick skin and feed them a treat. These elephants, that have been through truly horrific times, seem to harbor no grudges and to be striding resiliently into the future, much like the people of the region. My short voyage through Vietnam and Cambodia has not been a sightseeing trip; it has been a timeless journey into resilient cultures that will live within me forever.

Next, we fly back to Vietnam and spend three days exploring Hanoi, which you can read about in our next installment.

The basics:

In 2025, AmaWaterways offers one-week Mekong River trips, except during May, June, and July, traveling between Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam and Siem Reap, Cambodia. Prices start at around $2,320 and include transfers between the ship and Ho Chi Minh City and Siem Reap and all sightseeing, wi-fi, meals, and on-board programs. Airfare (discounted fares are available), visa fees, bar drinks (alcoholic beverages with meals are included), port charges (about $210 per person) and suggested tips ($80 per person for the crew) and $20-$25 for the cruise manager are extra. AmaWaterways also offers a choice of all-inclusive pre- and post-cruise options. The most comprehensive is eight nights, including Ho Chi Minh City, Siem Reap/Angkor Wat, Hanoi, and Ha Long Bay, priced at $2,779 per person. (AmaWaterways.com)

Credit cards are accepted most places, but not everywhere. In Cambodia, where the U.S. dollar is an official currency, you’ll find it helpful to have small bills on hand.

Be sure to check with your doctor or a travel medicine specialist for recommendations on vaccinations and other health precautions, and the U.S. Department of State, CIA.gov and the CIA World Factbook for helpful country information.

Note when filling out visa applications, flight and hotel reservations that dates in Vietnam and Cambodia are written day/month/year. I almost booked my flight for the wrong date. (April 1, 2025 would be written 01/04/2025).

Next: Museum Hopping and Shopping in Hanoi

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Cruising, Cultural travel, International Travel

AmaWaterways’ Mekong Luxury Cruise through Vietnam and Cambodia: Ho Chi Minh City and the Mekong

March 17, 2025 krubin723

*We explore the watery Tra Su Cajuput Forest by boat and on foot. ©GeriBain*

by Geri Bain for Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

Silently, our rowboat glides through waters thick with lotus flowers, water lilies, and vegetation and along narrow passageways lined by towering evergreen cajuput (melaleuca) trees whose outstretched branches host hundreds of nesting birds. Later, we hike to an observatory tower for panoramic views of the 2100-acre Tra Su Cajuput Forest and Bird Sanctuary, which shelters over 70 bird species.

We are in Vietnam, and this is one of many amazing tours my 30-year-old-daughter and I enjoy on a week-long AmaWaterways Mekong River cruise. We are traveling on the five-star AmaDara. Our cruise begins in Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam and ends in Siem Reap, Cambodia. Here, in the first of a three-part story, we share highlights from our journey through southern Vietnam.

*The Sofitel Saigon Plaza Hotel’s welcoming elephant statue has its trunk up to convey positive energy and good fortune. ©GeriBain*

Our trip begins with two pre-cruise nights at the Sofitel Saigon Plaza Hotel in Ho Chi Minh City. The hotel is within walking distance of almost everything we want to see, and its rooftop pool and Bremiere spa are great for unwinding after our 26-hour journey from New York City.

The Sofitel reflects the city’s blend of French Colonial and traditional and modern Vietnamese influences in its decor, service and dining. The lobby has a croissant/pastry cart as well as an area displaying and selling fine local lacquerware and other crafts. It has both French and Vietnamese restaurants, and an extensive breakfast buffet that features Pho (soup) made to order, a croissant and pastry station and extensive selections of foods from around the world.

*ST25 by KOTO is a high-end restaurant with the lofty mission of educating and hiring disadvantaged youth. ©GeriBain*

Our favorite meal in Ho Chi Minh City is at ST25 by KOTO, our hotel’s tony Vietnamese restaurant. It is popular with locals and guests for its ambiance and its creative twist on traditional dishes like spiced Barramundi (fish) roasted in banana leaves with mắm tôm sauce (fermented shrimp paste). It takes its name from the acclaimed Vietnamese rice variety, ST25.

One of the wonderful things about this restaurant is that it trains, hires and supports at-risk and disadvantaged youth, and the training is in life-skills, not just hospitality. Everyone working there has come through the program, including our personable maitre d. The service is impeccable and every dish is an artfully presented unique treat, from the yellowtail kingfish in avocado puree and black sesame appetizer to the Barramundi, a delicious fish roasted in banana leaves with chili, turmeric, spring onion and a mắm tôm sauce (fermented shrimp paste).

A friend had advised us to pack lightly and bring an empty suitcase because Vietnam prices warranted buying a whole new wardrobe. The values are definitely there; two shopping experiences stand out.

*Phuong Giang tailor shop has books of styles and bolts of fabric to choose from. ©GeriBain*

The first is Phuong Giang, a small shop that came highly recommended, where we page through style books, select a fabric and get measured; the dress is delivered to our hotel the next day for a follow-up fitting at the time we request. The cost is under $75.

Also memorable is Ben Thanh Market, a bustling, clean and orderly indoor market that sells everything from running track suits to suitcases at jaw-droppingly low prices. For example, Nike shirts and shorts are about $5. I buy a chic pleated maxi dress for $18 USD that is similar to ones I’d seen for more than $100 in the U.S.

*The Museum of South Vietnamese Women has an extensive exhibit on the many varieties of traditional women’s clothing among the region’s many ethnic groups. ©GeriBain*

Happily, the museums in Ho Chi Minh City we visit have excellent English signage. We start out at Independence Palace, a.k.a. Reunification Palace, the opulent former seat of French Colonial and South Vietnamese governments, where we see the stately meeting rooms where diplomats and heads of state were greeted, held important meetings and were entertained, and the War Remnants Museum, where news clippings, photos, munitions and other artifacts reveal the ravages of the “American War.”

Since we’re especially interested in learning more about the cultural and historic roots of Vietnam, we visit two other excellent museums: the Museum of South Vietnamese Women, which focuses on women’s roles in farming, family and war during more than 1,000 years of foreign invasions, and the History Museum of Ho Chi Minh City, whose exhibits start with prehistoric times. We spend about two to three hours in each and they provide great context for the sights we will see during our cruise.

On our third morning, we meet up with our AmaWaterways group in the hotel lobby and board buses for a lively, informative ride to our home for the next seven nights, the AmaDara. Built in Vietnam, the five-star, 62-cabin river cruise ship reflects the Mekong’s French Colonial and Asian aesthetic in its hardwood floors, wood furnishings, and colorful artwork depicting local life.

Exploring the ship, we find a small air-conditioned workout space, three spa treatment rooms, a plunge pool, large indoor and outdoor cocktail/coffee lounges and a large dining room. Before dinner, Huy, our energetic and knowledgeable cruise manager, provides the first of our daily talks about the destinations we’ll visit. We begin getting to know some of our crew members, who are almost all from the region.

We appreciate that the dining room always serves a choice of several regional foods like sweet and salty pork bowl and fish “amok”, cooked in a rich, spiced coconut milk sauce, as well as international dishes. And we love that menu items are plated and displayed with a list of ingredients as we enter the dining room—especially helpful for some less familiar dishes.

*After a performance by local folk musicians, we are invited to try their exotic instruments. ©GeriBain*

After dinner, a group of folk musicians comes aboard to perform. The music is unlike Western music and each musician demonstrates their instrument before performing. Then, after the performance, we are invited to chat with the musicians and if we like, try out their instruments.

The next morning, I join a pre-breakfast stretch class on the sundeck with Hanna, the ship’s wellness coach. She offers a surprising number of daily yoga, qigong and other classes, and I can still hear her gentle reminders to breathe deeply and take in the healthy air of the Mekong.

Our next two days in Vietnam are packed with adventure and our days take on a rhythm of morning excursions, a refreshing midday break and lunch on board the ship in air-conditioned comfort, and then a second set of activities in the afternoon. We opt for the active excursions which have more walking or add a second site to the standard tour.

*Cobras are bottled in wine, but our guide warns about possible adverse effects of their toxin. ©GeriBain*

After breakfast, we head out in sampans (traditional small boats) to a candy and rice-paper workshop in Cai Be, where we watch and sample each step of the candy process, see rice paper being made by hand, and visit their small local crafts shop. We taste some local liquors, but on the advice of our guide, we skip the snake wine.

Active travelers continue on for a guided walk through Dong Hoa Hiep, an ancient village of fruit tree groves and ornate historic homes. The highlight is Mr. Kiet’s Ancient House, a faithfully restored upper-class 1838 home with intricately carved wooden archways and doors and a fine collection of antique furnishings, many with luminescent inlaid nacre. Recognized by UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage site, the home is still occupied by the widow of Mr Kiet, who operates a small restaurant in the orchard garden.

*Mr Kiet’s Ancient House Shrine©GeriBain*

Phuc, our guide, points out the three impressive ancestor shrines in the entry room which include photos of deceased relatives, religious statues, candles, incense burners and offerings of fruit and other items. He tells us that most Vietnamese homes have ancestor shrines near their entrance or in a prominent location; the richer the family, the more elaborate the shrine. He explains that departed family members are thought to watch over their descendants and offerings at the altars allow the living to show their gratitude and remain connected. The three shrines here are quite grand.

*The Divine Eye looking out from behind the altar at the Cao Dai Temple is a reminder to worshippers that God is all-seeing and omnipresent. ©GeriBain*

Our afternoon tour takes us to the wet market in Sa Dec, where we see live eels, snake fish, snails and duck embryos, still in the shell, which are a local delicacy. From there, we board sampans and boat over to the Cao Dai Temple, where brilliant paintings and sculptures illustrate the beliefs of this home-grown Vietnamese monotheistic religion. Combining elements of Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism, Christianity, Vietnamese folk religions and other practices, the Cao Dai religion is now the third largest religion in Vietnam.

On our last morning in Vietnam, we have two options: a trishaw tour of a village, stopping at silk and rattan workshops and a home visit, or an excursion to the Tra Su Cajuput Forest and Bird Sanctuary. Based on conversations with fellow passengers over dinner that evening, there was no wrong choice. We opt for nature, and are thrilled to have the chance to see this pristine eco-system.

This afternoon, we are required to remain on-board as the boat clears customs into Cambodia. AmaWaterways has collected our passports, arranges our visas and takes care of all the details. We take the opportunity to experience the region’s special deep-tissue massage spa treatments and join a cooking class.

It’s only been three days since we set out on AmaWaterways’ AmaDara, but it feels like much longer because of all we’ve seen and done. Our guide, Phuc, who lives in Ho Chi Minh City, must leave us at the border. He has been more than our guide; he has shared stories about his family and taught so much about Vietnamese culture and everyday life in the Mekong. We are sad to bid him farewell as we prepare to sail across the border to Cambodia. At the same time, we are excited for tomorrow, when we will wake up in Cambodia’s exotic capital, Phnom Penh.

The basics:

In 2025, AmaWaterways offers one-week Mekong River trips, except during May, June, and July, traveling between Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam and Siem Reap, Cambodia. Prices start at around $2,320 and include transfers between the ship and Ho Chi Minh City and Siem Reap and all sightseeing, wi-fi, meals, and on-board programs. Extra charges include airfare (discounted fares are available), visa fees, bar drinks (alcoholic beverages with meals are included), port charges (about $210 p.p.) and suggested tips ($80 per passenger for the crew and $20-$25 for the cruise manager). AmaWaterways also offers a choice of all-inclusive pre- and post-cruise options. The most comprehensive is eight nights, including stays in Ho Chi Minh City, Siem Reap/Angkor Wat,, and Ha Long Bay, and all transportation, priced at $2,779 per person.

Flights from the U.S. can take well over 20 hours. As with all cruises, it’s important to arrive at least a day early in case of flight delays. Considering the time change and potential for jet lag, I’d suggest a minimum two-night pre-cruise cushion—more if you have time.

Bargaining in markets is expected. Generally, when we tell a merchant we will think about it and start to walk away, the price drops. Then, we may ask if that is the best they can do, and the price sometimes drops again. If it’s a big purchase, it’s smart to stop at a few booths to get a sense of pricing and quality.

Get the required visa at Vietnam’s website (evisa.gov.vn), where the fee is $25 (if you use a visa service it costs something like $197), and at Cambodia’s website (evisa.gov.kh), where the fee is $30, but give yourself enough time to get the confirmation.

Useful contacts:

AmaWaterways.com

Sofitel Saigon Plaza

Raffles Grand Hotel D’Angkor Siem Reap

Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi Hotel

Next: AmaWaterways Cruises to Cambodia

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Cruising, Gift of Travel, Hotels & Resorts, luxury travel, Resorts & Hotels, River Cruises

‘Tis the Season for Best Deals of the Year for Resorts, Tours and Cruises

November 20, 2024 krubin723

*Take advantage of seasonal savings on bucket-list travel experiences like Machu Picchu, Peru © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

By Karen Rubin, Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

Take advantage of the biggest sales on travel of the year to gift your family, friends and yourself a bucket-list travel experience – luxury resort, tour, cruise. Here are more Black Friday/Cyber Monday/Travel Tuesday deals – but many are not waiting for Black Friday, and are already offering the discounted rates. Here is a sampling:

Club Med, a pioneer of the all-inclusive concept, is offering its best discount of the year with its Black Friday sale, Nov. 19-Dec. 2, offering travelers up to 50% off winter, spring and summer getaways across its 70 all-inclusive resorts in the Caribbean, Mexico, and Canada. The deal includes up to $500 Instant Savings and free stays for kids under 4. Whether chasing Caribbean vibes at the luxurious Club Med Michès Playa Esmeralda or mountain highs at Club Med Québec, your next adventure is in reach.

Club Med Miches Playa Esmeralda (photo: Club Med)

Additionally, the Black Friday sale extends to international resorts with up to $770 instant savings at Club Med favorites like the Exclusive Collection (5-star) Alpine ski resort Club Med Val d’Isere and the newly-renovated Club Med Gregolimano in Greece. Perks also include: Kids under 4 stay free; lift passes; and group ski and snowboard lessons for all levels, available for ages 4 and up.

North America Resorts: Enjoy 50% off, plus up to $500 Instant Savings per person/week when booking one of Club Med’s North American all-inclusive resorts, booked Nov. 19-Dec. 2 for travel Dec. 7, 2024 to June 27, 2025. Resorts include Club Med Punta Cana, Club Med Michès Playa Esmeralda, Club Med Cancún, Club Med Ixtapa, Club Med Québec Charlevoix, Club Med Turkoise, Club Med Columbus, Club Med La Caravelle, Club Med Buccaneer’s Creek.

International Resorts: Get up to $770 Instant Savings per person/week when booking one of Club Med’s international sun and mountain resorts booked Nov. 19-Dec. 2 for travel from Nov. 24, 2024-May 30, 2025.

Book: https://www.clubmed.us/o/black-friday

Hospitality Savings

Hyatt is offering up to 25% off at more than 800 destinations – from the sun-soaked beaches of Cancun to vibrant city escapes in NYC – making it easier than ever to gift an unforgettable trip. Visit hyatt.com/cybersale to book through Dec. 9, 2024 and enjoy stays through April 20, 2025.

Hotel booking site HotelSlash is offering a free lifetime membership (membership is normally $29.95 per year) along with a 7% discount on top of their already low rates. Bookable from Nov. 28- Dec.. 3. Use promo code BLACKFRIDAY. No blackout travel dates, no restrictions; promo code is valid for prepaid bookings and entered on the checkout page. An open secret among savvy travelers, HotelSlash is like price protection for your hotel reservation. The company unlocks exclusive, members-only hotel rates at deep discounts (average savings 20%) that are unavailable to the general public. In addition, HotelSlash monitors rates for stays you already booked and notifies you if a lower rate is found; all you need to do is cancel your current reservation and rebook at the lower price to save even more. Visit https://www.hotelslash.com/.

Save at Club Wyndham Bonnet Creek, Orlando with Extra Holidays (photo: Extra Holidays)

Save up to 35% on 100+ top vacation ownership resorts with Extra Holidays’ best sale of the year, with savings up to 35% on 100+ vacation ownership resorts, and rates as low as $99 a night, for travel by Feb. 28, 2025! Every week between Nov. 1 and Dec. 6, new deals will be made available at top vacation destinations and resorts, such as WorldMark Moab, nestled in the valley of one of Utah’s most picturesque settings, or Club Wyndham Bonnet Creek, a family-friendly utopia just miles from Orlando’s best theme parks. Whether guests want to relax by the beach, take in scenic mountain views, or visit historical landmarks and attractions, there’s a deal for everyone. As an added bonus, guests can join Insider Extras for free to receive early access to deals, along with two instant rewards upon booking. Use promo code BF24.

Beaches Turks & Caicos (photo: Beaches Resorts)

Sandals Resorts and Beaches Resorts are offering up to 65% off and up to $1,500 in credit off their vacation booked between Nov. 8-Dec. 3 for travel through December 3, 2025. Guests who book at the adults-only Sandals Resorts – including the newly-opened Sandals Saint Vincent and the Grenadines – will enjoy up to 65% off and up to $1,500 in credit off their vacation (up to $1,000 instant credit + $500 air credit), while families who book at Beaches’ Jamaica or Turks & Caicos resorts will enjoy up to 65% off and up to $1,000 in credit off their vacation (up to $400 instant credit + $600 air credit). Plus, select room categories are eligible to receive a free night for more fun under the Caribbean sun. In the spirit of giving, for each booking made between Black Friday and Travel Tuesday, Sandals and Beaches will donate $15 to their philanthropic arm, the Sandals Foundation, in celebration of 15 years of uplifting Caribbean communities. Book at www.sandals.com/sale and www.beaches.com/sale.

Sandals St. Vincent (photo: Sandals Resorts)

This year for Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Travel Tuesday 2024, 26 Saint Lucia resorts are offering discounts and perks up to 76% off. Deals include discounts on room rates, upgrades, resort credits, spa discounts and more. Options include family-focused hotels, luxury resorts, eco-hotels, wellness properties, villas, global brands and locally-owned boutique hotels. The offers can be found at www.stlucia.org/en/offers-black-friday-cyber-monday-2024.

Pitons, St. Lucia. Some 26 resorts and hotels are offering seasonal specials (photo: St. Lucia)

TOURS:

Unforgettable Travel, a leading luxury travel company, is offering$1,000 off any private custom trips booked for 2025, excluding cruises. Boasting a team of seasoned travel specialists versed in Europe, Africa, and Asia, the company tailors diverse journey types, guided by local experts. Trip requests must be made Nov. 29-Dec. 13.

Save on Contiki’s Albania’s Beaches to Peaks tour *© Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Contiki, the social travel company for travelers 18 to 35 years old, is celebrating this year’s cyber holidays with savings of up to 25% off on a record-breaking 145 trips across six continents. 5. Travelers can save on brand-new trips such as a trip to Albania’s Beaches to Peaks, a Lima to Machu Picchu Road Trip, and exploring the Ancient Wonders of Rome, Athens, and Cairo plus top-sellers like the Thai Island Hopper West tour and over $1,000 off a 15-day adventure from London to Budapest by Train. Expert trip managers handle everything from accommodations, transportation, unique attractions, and most meals. Travelers can secure the best deals from Nov. 1-Dec. 5 on select 2025 departure dates.

Barcelona, Spain. Save on Trafalgar’s “Best of Spain” tour this holiday season. (photo: Trafalgar)

Global guided vacation company, Trafalgar, is offering up to 15% off top 2025 itineraries for bookings made from Nov. 1-Dec. 5, including over $600 off Trafalgar’s Best of Spain and nearly $630 off the Switzerland and Austria itinerary. Travelers can enjoy fully guided itineraries from expert Travel Directors as they visit iconic attractions and off-the-beaten-path destinations from UNESCO World Heritage sites to local dining experiences. The brand is also offering 30% off one itinerary a day throughout the sale period on popular trips.

Biking the Shining Sea path, Cape Cod **© Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com**

Premium touring company, Insight Vacations, is offering up to 15% off coveted 2025 destinations booked Nov. 1-Dec. 5, with savings of up to $700 off the Boston, Cape Cod, and the Islands itinerary and up to $620 off the Greece Undiscovered itinerary. Travelers looking for their big 2025 adventure can score big savings on top immersive experiences, premium accommodations, world-class dining and more. Travelers can also take advantage of limited-time savings of up to 30% off one itinerary a day with daily rotating deals.

Brendan Vacations, the experts in Celtic travel, is giving guests savings of up to 15% off on its most popular guided tours for 2025, booked Nov. 1-Dec. 5. These include up to $1,200 off the Romantic Britain and Ireland and up to $800 off Best of Ireland and Scotland. Custom itineraries also feature door buster savings of up to $1,200 off per couple for the first 50 guests on any custom trip booked for travel from January through March 2025. Couples can redeem up to $500 off all other Private Chauffeur and Lux Self-Drive bookings or up to $400 off all Rail Vacations and Self-Drive trips. Travelers who book a Self-Drive itinerary will receive a free online driving guide from international driving guide company, Tripiamo.

*Take advantage of tour companies’ seasonal savings on bucket-list travel experiences like Machu Picchu, Peru © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Costsaver, a budget tour company, is celebrating Black Friday from Nov. 1-Dec. 5with savings on a selection of 2025 worldwide tours includingup to$300 off the European Experience, which hops through 12 cities in 8 countries, or up to $380 off the South America Discover, where travelers can visit the iconic Iguassu Falls and ruins of Machu Picchu. Plus, guests can customize their trip even further with a $50 credit on Choice Optional Experiences on all bookings.

Cruise Offers

Silversea Cruises docked in the port of Lisbon, Portugal *© Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Cruisecritic.com is showing Black Friday luxury cruise offers with special rates, free air, upgrades and perks that can be booked through Cruise Specialists: Regent Seven Seas Cruises: up to 40% off cruise fare and $1,000 shipboard credit on 2025 and 2026 cruises booked by Nov. 30. Oceania Cruises: up to 25% bonus savings on more than 200 voyages to Mediterranean, Northern Europe, Alaska, Asia, Australia, South America, Africa and Caribbean, with perks on select sailings, booked by Dec. 4. Viking is offering up to free air and $25 deposits on 2025 and 2026 Rhine Getaway, Danube Waltz, Romantic Danube, Cities of Lights, Elegant Elbe, Paris to Swiss Alps booked by Nov. 30. Silversea is offering up to $6000 cruise savings on 550 ocean and expedition cruises to all 7 continents, plus reduced deposits, booked by Dec. 2. Seabourn is offering a 2-category veranda suite upgrade plus reduced deposits on select 2025-2026 cruises to the Mediterranean, Alaska, Northern Europe, Antarctica, Caribbean, Asia booked by Dec. 3. Cunard is offering up to $400 onboard credit plus gratuities on 400 voyages to the Mediterranean, Alaska, Northern Europe, New England, Transatlantic Crossings plus exclusive perks on select sailings, booked by Jan 6. Book through Cruise Specialists, cruisespecialists.com, 888-994-6134.

The removable roof-covered pool onboard Holland America’s Volendam. HAL is offering up to 25% off select cruises through September 2026 booked between Nov. 21-Dec. 1 © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Holland America Line, a premium cruise line with an over-150-year legacy, is offering up to 25% off cruise fares on select itineraries booked between Nov. 21-Dec. 1. Select sailings also include free prepaid crew appreciation, a 50% reduced deposit, and free fares for 3rd and 4th guests when booked in the same room. The offer applies to select cruises sailing between December 2024 and September 2026, excluding full-lengthGrand Voyages and 2026 Alaska Cruisetours.

Cruise Croatia, a small-ship cruise operator specializes in luxury yacht cruises along the Adriatic coast (photo: Cruise Croatia)

Cruise Croatia, the leading luxury small-ship cruise operator specializing in luxury yacht cruises along the Adriatic coast, is offering up to $700 off per cabin on select departures between Dubrovnik and Split from May to August 2025, for new bookings made Nov. 29-Dec. 13.

Uniworld Boutique River Cruises, a luxury all-inclusive river cruise line with sailings in Europe, Egypt, South America and Asia, is launching its 12 Days of Christmas Event on Black Friday with exciting daily savings and surprises ranging from 50% off popular cruises to free trip extensions, complimentary suite upgrades, and waived solo traveler supplements. A new offer will be unveiled each weekday for 12 days, with the first deal unveiled on Nov. 29. Offers will be valid for travel on select sailings in 2025, and guests can check for the surprise savings each day by visiting Uniworld.com/12days.

*Cruise with Uniworld on the S.S.Victoria on the Moselle (photo: Uniworld)*

Riviera River Cruises, an ultra-premium river cruise brand offering experiences aboard its fleet of 13 custom-designed ships, which sail along Europe’s iconic waterways, including the Danube, Douro, Rhine, Moselle, Main, Rhône, Seine, and the Dutch Waterways. The company is renowned for its exceptional cruise directors and local guides, immersive itineraries and an elegant fleet of luxurious ships. It is also noted for its dedicated solo traveler departures, and commitment to delivering superior service at outstanding value. The fleet’s ships offer a range of amenities, such as a panoramic observation lounges, five-star dining, a spa and wellness area and sun decks, creating a relaxed yet sophisticated atmosphere. The Deal: Book any 2025 departure Nov. 21-Dec. 6 for a €100 onboard credit per person, plus agents will receive a $100 gift card per cabin. This Black Friday offer applies to all dates, sailings, and categories, with additional savings of $500 per cabin on cruises of 7 nights or more and $1,000 per cabin on 10-night or longer cruises. Looking ahead to 2026, take advantage of a special ‘two for one’ deal on all departures.

Quark Expeditions’ Explorers Black Friday Sale on through Dec.2, provides savings up to 50% on select polar voyages: Crossing the Circle: Southern Expedition; 40% off south Greenland Adventure; 50% off Svalbard Explorer: Best of High Arctic Norway; 50% off South Georgia and Antarctica. Contact your travel agent or quarkexpeditions.com, 888-908-4833, https://www.quarkexpeditions.com/offer/black-friday.

Aurora Expeditions is offering up to $6000 savings on small ship adventures to Antarctica, Greenland, Svalbard and the Northwest Passage booked Nov.18-Dec. 3 (833 826 5828).

*Erie Canal Adventures’ live-aboard canalboard ply New York State’s historic Erie Canal © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Take advantage of Eric Canal Adventures’ holiday savings 10% off (up to $550) cruises on their fleet of 11 fully-equipped live-aboard canalboats on New York State’s famed Erie Canal (celebrating bicentennial this year). The sale is on through Dec. 31; use promo code EBIRD 10 (315-986-3011, eriecanaladventures.com)

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© 2024 Travel Features Syndicate, a division of Workstyles, Inc. All rights reserved. Visit goingplacesfarandnear.com and travelwritersmagazine.com/TravelFeaturesSyndicate/. Blogging at goingplacesnearandfar.wordpress.com and moralcompasstravel.info. Visit instagram.com/going_places_far_and_near and instagram.com/bigbackpacktraveler/ Send comments or questions to FamTravLtr@aol.com. Tweet @TravelFeatures. ‘Like’ us at facebook.com/NewsPhotoFeatures

Cruising, Cultural travel, International Travel, luxury travel, Museums and Exhibits

European Waterways Alsace-Lorraine Canal Cruise: A Boat Guillotine, Two Tunnels and a Monumental Chagall

April 16, 2024 krubin723

*European Waterways luxury hotel barge, Panache, approaches the “boat guillotine” at the Arzviller boat elevator © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

By Karen Rubin, Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

Day 6 Lutzelbourg to Niderviller

On Day 6 our European Waterways luxury hotel barge, Panache, cruises from Lutzelbourg to Niderviller where the cruise ends, during which we experience some of the most dramatic cruising – thrilling even considering how calm and restful the slow cruising on the canal is – of the trip.

I set out on the bike along the towpath but come to a fork and am confused which way to go, so return to the Panache. It’s a good thing I did return to the boat because the bike path would have taken me away from the boat.

Indeed, the canal takes a turn and we get our first view of an astonishing sight: the Arzviller boat elevator that will carry Panache 45 meters up a mountainside in mere minutes.

Captain Brian excites us with the image of a “boat guillotine”. But before we have the experience (we have to wait our turn), we tie up and walk a short distance to Cristal Lehrer (Cristallerie Lehrer) glass-blowing factory where we get to see demonstrations of the craftsmanship involved.

*Demonstrating glass making at the Cristal Lehrer glass factory © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

In 1920, there would have been 1500 glass workers in this area. One of the workers was Charles Lehrer. Decades later, his son, Bruno Lehrer, founded this glassworks.

*Demonstrating glass blowing at the Cristal Lehrer glass factory © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

We get to observe from an amphitheater as glassblowers heat the molten glass to 1700 degrees Celsius; use different oxides to create the different colors and shape them into a range of items.

*Bruno demonstrates how he cuts glass at the Cristal Lehrer glass factory © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

In the cutting and etching room, a craftsman named Bruno shows us how he cuts shapes into a glass, etches images like a swan or a bird, changing the wheel for a different cut and then engraves my name in the glass, which he gives me as a gift. He tells me he has worked in this factory with his father from when he was 14 years old; now 86, the master craftsman is here every day demonstrating his skill. (It occurs to me later whether this is Bruno Lehrer, himself?)

Arzviller Boat Elevator

An engineering feat when it was installed in 1969, and still the only one of its kind in Europe, before the Arzviller boat elevator was constructed in 1969, it took boats an entire day to navigate the 17 locks over four kilometers to ascend the 146 feet in altitude. Before the Arzviller boat elevator, only one barge a day could pass through, but today, as many as 39 can make the trip each day.

*Panache heads into the “boat guillotine” to enter the Arzviller boat elevator © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Now back on the Panache, it is our turn to go through the “boat guillotine” – really the black door that comes down to seal the carriage, like a bathtub, into which our boat floats, to be carried, like an elevator, up the hill. Two counterweights, weighing 450 tons each, powered by two winches, lift or lower barges safely up and down the hill at a 22-degree angle. It takes four minutes for us to be lifted to the top, where the door rises and we continue our journey on the Canal de la Marne au Rhin.

*The Panache is lifted up the Arzviller boat elevator © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

What an experience, but the drama isn’t over.

Coming out of the boat elevator, we cruise a bit further until we come to an enormous tunnel, just exactly the width of the boat, cut through the Vosges mountains.

*Panache enters the first of two tunnels through the mountain © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

It is unbelievably exciting to go through – I don’t even go down for lunch, which is served by candlelight – until we get through the tunnel, some 30 minutes later.

But that is not all, because we will soon come to a second tunnel that takes 20 minutes to get through.

*Panache navigates the narrow tunnel © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

In between the tunnels, I go down for lunch which is also an event –fennel and anchovies salad; orange duck with couscous, and selection of cheese. White wine from Alsace, Gewurztramine 2020, a vegan, “vin biologique” wine “Evidence” ( named to reflect “the respect we have for biodiversity in our vineyards as “evidenced” by the return of game birds to our land, which has inspired this label”).

*Captain Brian keeps watch as Panache navigates the narrow tunnel © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

And yet, there are still more astonishments to unfold on this day, our last full day of the cruise.

We are driven to Sarrebourg, a classic, historic French town.

*Lunch served by candlelight as Panache goes through the tunnels © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

A Monumental Chagall

The astonishing highlight in Sarrebourg comes at the Chapelle des Cordeliers. Built in 1265 by Franciscans, the church was used for barracks during the French Revolution; in 1870, during the German Annexation, the church was used for worship for German soldiers. From 1927, the History and Archaeology Society converted the chapel to a museum. But by 1970, the building, near ruin, was demolished, leaving only the choir of the chapel and an open space where a wall should have stood.

*Marc Chagall’s monumental stained glass window, La Paix, at the Chapelle des Cordeliers, Sarrebourg, France © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

The Mayor of Sarrebourg at the time, Pierre Messmer, a former Prime Minister of France, entreated his friend, the world-famous artist Marc Chagall to create stained glass windows that would close the empty space. Chagall agreed to do it as a gift to the town. It took Chagall six months, from December 1973-Febuary 1974, to produce a series of six sketches for what became his largest stained glass window, 12 meters high by 7 ½ meters wide.

*Detail from Marc Chagall’s monumental stained glass window, La Paix, at the Chapelle des Cordeliers, Sarrebourg, France © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Messner had asked Marc Chagall for Sarrebourg to be featured. Chagall, who had never been to Sarrebourg, had planned to visit in the summer of 1974, but he was not well enough to travel, so relied on photographs. It took two more years (1974-6) for master glassmaker Charles Marq to create it in the Simon de Reims workshop, where Chagall had all his stained glass projects produced. “There is all the genius of Chagall – the monumental dimension, the light and the transparency of the final realization,” the notes say.

Chagall died in 1985 at the age of 98 after creating one more stained glass work, but never saw “The Peace” installed. (https://www.sarrebourg.fr/parcours-chagall/chapelle-des-cordeliers/)

“For me a stained glass window is a transparent partition between my heart and the heart of the world. Stained glass has to be serious and passionate. It is something elevating and exhilarating. It has to live through the perception of light,” Chagall wrote.

La Paix (“The Peace”) puts Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden at the center, surrounded by a multitude of Biblical and religious symbols and subjects, as well as secular images that give a nod to the Alsace-Lorraine, our guide, Philippe Zugmeyer, explains, showing us Chagall’s sketches which we can compare to the finished work. “The face of Eve is very bright, white, brightest image. They are smiling, showing love. Look closely and you will see the face of girl from Lorraine – identified by the regional headdress she wears.”

He points us to the Prophet Isaiah in green, an important symbol for Chagall of reconciliation of all creatures. There are the lamb, cow, bear, snake, lion. There is King David with a harp. Jacob’s ladder. Jesus on a donkey heralded by people smiling and cheering. Jesus giving his Sermon on the Mount. Jesus on the cross. There is a baby to symbolize maternity (not nativity, he notes). Moses with two beams of light emitting from his head.

“This is not a religious lesson, it is profane [secular],” he tells us. “It is about the region. Peace and reconciliation.” But he adds, “There is a lot we can’t explain – it is up to you to find your own meaning in the Chagall. What is clear is that Chagall intended to bring unity – peace. There are Old Testament and New Testament themes, symbols and imagery.”

In addition to “The Peace,” the stained glass windows on the side walls were also designed by Marc Chagall.

I never expected to see anything like this on this day.

From here we walk a short distance to the affiliated Musée du pays de Sarrebourg (Museum of Sarrebourg and its surroundings). Created in 1905, it was originally only an archaeological museum. Today, it is a modern building that includes a space dedicated to Marc Chagall, tapestries and an exhibition of earthenware and porcelain from the Niderviller manufacture and Roman artifacts.

*Yvette Cauquil-Prince’s tapestry based on Marc Chagall painting on view at the Sarrebourg museum © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

We see the tapestries created by Yvette Cauquil-Prince (1928 –2005), a Belgian-born weaver and master craftswoman who reproduced the works of renowned 20^th century artists including Pablo Picasso, Max Ernst, Paul Klee, Wassily Kandinsky, Alexander Calder. But she is best known for her association with Chagall, producing over 40 tapestries of his works with meticulous, even impossible detail, several which we see here.

*Sarrebourg, France, visited on European Waterways’ Panache Alsace-Lorraine canal cruise © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Gala Captain’s Dinner

This is our last evening aboard The Panache and while each meal has been the ultimate in fine dining, tonight’s Captain’s Dinner when Captain Brian heads the table, has the feeling of a gala with formal table setting – white tablecloth, red cloth napkins, candlelight.

*Last night’s Captain’s Dinner aboard Panache is a gala affair © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

The meal features peas and wasabi tartlet; Jerusalem artichoke; lobster tail piquillos; chocolate with truffle; cheese selection. The wine is Chablis Grand Cru Les Blanchots (2018) from Albert Bichot, founded in 1831and still family-owned, and a Pino Noir Grand Cru from Burgundy (2014).

“This wine is like walking in forest after rain- grapes come from plot of soil at bottom of hill in Burgundy,” says Brian, who comes from Burgundy. “Grown in the forest, the grapes are half protected from the morning sun. Less sun, less sugar, less alcohol. The forest brings moisture, humidity – freshness. It’s very fresh – the flavor of rose, forest flavors, then red berries, an oak barrel and voila.

*The Panache crew © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Captain Brian, who chose tonight’s cheeses, regales us with the back stories: Comte, a favorite of cow’s milk cheese from Franche-Comte, he says, “is a treasure. This is a tiny piece of huge wheel. To make it, you need the milk from 30 cows’ full day production.

The second cheese, Valencay, a hard goat cheese from the Loire, has a fabulous story: after his disastrous campaign in Egypt, Napoleon visited the town of Valençay and was treated to this renowned cheese. For Bonaparte, the shape of the cheese – a pyramid – reminded him of his recent defeat so he furiously drew his sword and in one stroke cut off the top.

Third is Roquefort, the best blue cheese, bred where the mold comes to the cheese (instead of injected). “Legend has it that a shepherd boy left his lunch in a cave, but returned some time later to find the moldy cheese. He tried it.– don’t ask me why, he’s very French – and instead of getting sick or being poisoned, found the cheese delicious. That’s how Roquefort was discovered.” (Interesting anecdote I discover: Before penicillin was discovered, many people in France simply rubbed Penicillium roqueforti on their wounds to prevent bacterial infection.)

In the course of our six-day cruise, I calculate we sampled 36 cheeses –about half of all the controlled French cheeses – and 40 wines.

We see gorgeous scenery, to be sure, but the barge experience is about doing, being present, the camaraderie. And so there are sentimental farewells when we depart – the seven days we have spent together feeling like a long time and as no time at all.

“Travel makes the world feel big and small at the same time.” “Travel is the elixir of youth.”

The next morning, we are driven back to Strasbourg – 45 minutes to cover the distance we have traveled in six days cruising (and biking). I have enough time to continue to explore Strasbourg before I take the TGV train to Paris.

The Panache does this Alsace-Lorraine cruise on the Canal de la Marne au Rhin in both directions, but I was thrilled going the way we went, from Strasbourg to Niderviller because there is a constant build up of excitement, starting with floating through that stunning alee as we sail into Strasbourg, and climaxed by going up the incline (in this direction) and through the two tunnels, with the Marc Chagall on the last day.

*European Waterways’ luxury hotel barge Panache cruises the Marne au Rhin canal through France’s Alsace-Lorraine* *© Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

The 12-passenger luxury hotel barge Panache cruises the Alsace & Lorraine in summer and autumn; Holland in the Spring, when the flowers are in full bloom, and Champagne in May & June (Champagne itineraries typically include Brie cheese tastings, a tour of the Cathedral at Reims, Epernay and of course, tastings at renowned champagne houses).

This year, European Waterways celebrates its 50^th anniversary of its founding by Derek Banks and John Wood-Dow, who helped pioneer the concept of hotel barging and itineraries that focused on culture, history, fine wine and gourmet cuisine. Among the first to operate on the Canal du Midi, their efforts helped spur a new niche travel industry that proved instrumental in the revitalization of Europe’s intricate network of scenic canals and inland waterways as tourism destinations – giving new life to villages and communities that had depended upon the canals that no longer carried commercial cargo.

With a 6-to-20 guest capacity and 1:2 crew ratio, European Waterways is able to provide lavish on-board service and can transport their guests on the narrower, more intimate inland waterways that are inaccessible to larger vessels. This fascinating network of smaller canals allows for flexibility, spontaneity and ample opportunity to hop off and explore by bicycle or on foot, in addition to walking tours of communities and daily, chauffeured excursions “off the beaten path” to experience wine tastings and private visits of stately homes.

One of the largest providers of all-inclusive luxury hotel barging in Europe, European Waterways is launching its newest, ultra deluxe vessel, the eight-passenger Kir Royale. Debuting in France’s Champagne region in May 2024, the vessel features major upgrades that include a more spacious layout with modern furnishings, three sundecks and a spa pool, an upper observation deck with a panoramic view, and four air-conditioned cabins with en suite bathrooms.

Kir Royale will cruise the River Marne and Canal latéral à la Marne, offering six-night all-inclusive sailings with exclusive excursions to some of the region’s legendary Champagne houses such as Moët & Chandon. Guests will also be treated to immersive experiences such as lunch at the boutique Grand Cru Champagne house of Frerejean Frères, and on-board gastronomic meals with wine pairings served by the vessel’s own master chef.

Kir Royal will cruise Champagne from May through October. It joins European Waterways’ 12-passenger Panache, which cruises between Château-Thierry and Châlons-en-Champagne from mid-May to late-June. Both vessels provide private transfers from a designated location in central Paris. Reservations are now open, with rates starting at $8,550 per person, based on double occupancy. Whole boat charters are also available.

Contact European Waterways, 877-879-8808, www.europeanwaterways.com.

EUROPEAN WATERWAYS ALSACE-LORRAINE CANAL CRUISE: STRASBOURG’S CATHEDRAL, WINE TASTING ON ROUTE DES VINS

EUROPEAN WATERWAYS ALSATIAN CANAL CRUISE: MYSTERY OF THE NECKLACE IN SAVERNE, LALIQUE IN LUTZELBOURG

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© 2024 Travel Features Syndicate, a division of Workstyles, Inc. All rights reserved. Visit goingplacesfarandnear.com and travelwritersmagazine.com/TravelFeaturesSyndicate/. Blogging at goingplacesnearandfar.wordpress.com and moralcompasstravel.info. Visit instagram.com/going_places_far_and_near and instagram.com/bigbackpacktraveler/ Send comments or questions to FamTravLtr@aol.com. Tweet @TravelFeatures. ‘Like’ us at facebook.com/NewsPhotoFeatures

Cruising, Cultural travel, International Travel, luxury travel, Museums and Exhibits

European Waterways Alsatian Canal Cruise: Mystery of the Necklace in Saverne, Lalique in Lutzelbourg

April 11, 2024 krubin723

*European Waterways’ luxury hotel barge, Panache, cruises through the historic city of Saverne on the Marne au Rhin canal through France’s Alsace-Lorraine © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

By Karen Rubin, Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

Day 4 Waltenheim-sur-Zorn to Saverne

On this fourth day of European Waterways’ seven-day cruise cruise on the Marne au Rhin canal through France’s Alsace-Lorraine, the luxury hotel barge Panache cruises to the enchanting town of Saverne, boasting a history that dates back 2,000 years to Gallo-Roman times. We will tie up right in the town at the foot of the Château de Rohan, a palace built for a Cardinal that is so grand, it is known as the “Versailles of Alsace.”

Sue, who hails from Australia, and I are up early enough to go with Captain Brian into the village of Waltenheim-sur-Zorn to the most remarkable patisserie I have ever seen to pick up breads and other delights for our breakfast. The boat departs at 8 am on the dot (I had just stepped off for a photo and got back just in the nick).

*Stopping into a patisserie in Waltenheim-sur-Zorn to purchase breads for breakfast aboard the Panache © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Captain Brian tells me that I can bike up to lock 32 and the boat should be there around 2 pm. I do my calculation: Locks 42-41 are 4 km apart; locks 37-36 are 4 km (we will be there around lunchtime) while it will take the boat four hours to get to 37.

The biking on the towpath alongside the canal takes me passed some of the prettiest pastoral scenes on the route (especially between locks 39 to 37, from Lupstein to Dettwiller). It’s classic.

*Gorgeous pastoral scene just outside Saverne along the Marne au Rhin canal © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

I think I get in 20 miles riding all the way to Saverne and doubling back to lock 36 to get back on the boat for lunch

Lunch features French beans with aioli; crayfish with risotto – superb. The white wine is Sancerre La Ferriere 2021 (coincidentally, the book I am reading that day mentioned the same wine!) and the red wine-Sancerre La Louisonne (2016), a Pinot Noir from the Loire Valley.

*European Waterways’ luxury hotel barge Panache cruises on the Marne au Rhin canal to Saverne © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

We continue our onboard discovery of French cheeses with Mimolette (also known as Boule de Lille), a cow’s milk cheese produced in Flanders and Normandy, has a marvelous story: a French version of Edam, it has a distinctive orange color that was developed for King XIV in the 18^th C. A further study reveals that it was developed “on the advice of his finance minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert, that the way forward for the French economy was to export as much as possible and import as little as possible. France was pretty much bankrupt at the time and this strategy was aimed at balancing the budget. Colbert was also a big fan of taxes and micro-management.” (https://brieencounter.wordpress.com/2012/08/31/todays-cheese-is-mimolette/). We also experience Brillat-Savarin, a soft-ripened triple cream cow’s milk cheese with a natural, bloomy rind.

*Chef Leo’s crayfish with risotto* *© Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

At 3:30 pm, Captain Brian takes us on a delightful walking tour of Saverne, pointing out exquisite architecture – and here, I really appreciate the difference between wandering around and having someone who can point out the interesting details.

Saverne became really important for its geographical location – set where two major Roman roads converge, where you can access the Rhine and Rhone to go to the Netherlands, or where it joins the Seine to go to southern France. Not surprisingly, Saverne’s authority changed between France and Germany several times in history, and its cultural imprint – architecture, food, language – reflect both.

We come to a statue of the city’s emblem, the Unicorn, just in front of the Chateau Rohan,

Here, Brian attempts to relay in abbreviated form the “Mystery of Necklace,” This was a colossal scandal involving “the most expensive necklace of the Middle Ages, most beautiful, with the biggest diamonds in the world” that in today’s money would have been worth $15 million, helped bring down Marie Antoinette for her perceived excess and lead, ultimately, to her execution in the French Revolution. (I subsequently learn, she actually refused the necklace, because she said her country needed ships the money would buy.) But the connection to Saverne is this Chateau de Rohan, because at the heart of the scandal was Cardinal de Rohan who built the opulent palace. The mystery comes because the necklace was stolen and never found. (The events are even more dramatic than Alexandre Dumas’ “Three Musketeers”, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Affair_of_the_Diamond_Necklace)

*A 14^th century cloister in Saverne displays 17^th century frescoes © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

We walk to a 14^th century cloister, a stunning example of Gothic architecture with a garden where medicinal herbs were cultivated; it is ringed by a portico and impressive 17^th century frescoes which tell of a trial.

We walk to the Hotel de Ville – the city hall – a stunning historic building that manifests the city’s mix of culture: a Germanic balcony and a French balcony.

*Saverne’s historic Town Hall © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

It is adjacent to the oldest and most ornate building still standing, Maison Katz. Built in 1605 by Henri Katz, the Receiver General of the Bishopric, its beautiful façade of sculpted timber is a superb example of the German Renaissance style. Today, it is a popular restaurant. (Taverne Katz, 80 Grand’Rue 67700 Saverne, +33 (0)3 88 71 16 56, https://www.tavernekatz.com/en/restaurant).

*The stunning decoration of Maison Katz, dating from the 17^th century, in Saverne © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Befitting wealthy property, it is also very close to the Church Notre Dame, built in the 12-15^th centuries, with Romanesque arch and a Gothic interior. Remarkably, the Chapel has the original 15^th century stained glass; the rest has stained glass from the 19^th century.

*Church Notre-Dame in Saverne dates from the 12^th century © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Musée du Château de Rohan

We walk next to the Château de Rohan, overlooking the Marne-Rhine Canal that we have been cruising. Historically the residence of the bishops of Strasbourg, it was rebuilt by Cardinal de Rohan in 1779 in neoclassical style with magnificent gardens and a 140-meter-long façade made of Vosges sandstone (like the Notre-Dame of Strasbourg).

*Chateau de Rohan has been called the “Versailles of Alsace,” and today is Saverne’s city museum © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

The palace today houses the city museum. Founded in 1858, the museum exhibits art from the churches and castle of Saverne, a large archeological collection of Roman and Celtic artifacts from the excavation of the Marne-Rhine Canal, the collection of 20th century and ethnological art donated by feminist journalist and politician Louise Weiss, and a fascinating exhibit about her life and times.

Weiss trained as a teacher (against her family’s wishes), and throughout World War I worked as a war nurse and founded a hospital; from 1918-1934, she published a magazine, L’Europe nouvelle. In the 1920s, she left France to see the world “to discover true meaning,” spending time in Communist Russia, meeting Lenin and Trotsky. From 1935 to the beginning of World War II she committed herself to women’s suffrage and ran for Parliament in 1936. She was active in the French Resistance during the war and was the chief editor of a secret magazine. After World War II, she said she knew nothing of Asian people, and again set off to travel the world. In 1979 she became a member of the European Parliament. She died in 1983.She said her only regret in life was not being a candidate for president. She reminds me of a French Eleanor Roosevelt. (I learn later there is a statue of Louise Weiss at the fountain in the square.)

I walk back to the boat just before 6 pm, arriving as a trio comes on board, to regale us with French (“C’est si bon”) and gypsy jazz. Fabulous.

*A French Jazz trio entertains us aboard the Panache © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

The joy from the music carries over into dinner: trout with a tomato crumble; cod with tapioca and black garlic; a scrumptious dessert of strawberry with elderflower (that Chef Leo picked from his own garden that day). Every dish is so imaginative, distinctive, and magnificently presented.

Chef Leo, who typically introduces the main course, explains that the cod is cooked slowly at low temperature, the black garlic sauce made with burnt shallots. It gives a wonderful, unexpected flavor. “I love experimenting with different flavors,” he tells us.

*One of Chef Leo’s delectable dessert creations © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

The white wine is Grand Cru Alsatian Reisling, House of August; the red a Grand Vin d’Alsace, Pino Noir (2012).

The cheeses this evening include a creamy, buttery cow’s milk cheese, cousin to Brie; Abondance, a semi-firm cow’s milk cheese from Haute-Savoie, aged for three months on spruce blocks that has a delightful walnut taste; and Bleu de Gex, a creamy, semi-soft blue cheese made from unpasteurized milk in the Jura region).

Day 5 Saverne to Lutzelbourg

*Going through the highest lock on the Marne au Rhin canal, in Saverne © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Leaving Saverne, we go through the most dramatic and highest lock of all – it must be 30 feet high. I watch this feat, then hop off with the bike to ride the route to Lutzelbourg.

*European Waterways’ luxury hotel barge Panache cruises on the Marne au Rhin canal from Saverne © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

I return to the boat, just in time to see Chef Leo give us a cooking demonstration of the passionfruit crème brulee he is making in response to Sue’s request. It is so much fun to watch his preparation – Captain Brian pitches in, too.

We take note of a (tongue-in-cheek) “firing board” in which Captain Brian keeps tabs on who is in the running to get fired – whoever has the least checkmarks at the end of the quarter gets a prize.

*Chef Leo gives the Panache guests a cooking demonstration of his passionfruit crème brulee © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Lunch features asparagus and cream; beef with cheesy mash potatoes (vegetarian option salmon) and the passionfruit crème brulee (parfait!). The wines are an Alsatian Riesling, Lieu Dit Burg, and an Alsace Pinot Noir (2018), Famille Hugel.

*Chef Leo’s passionfruit crème brulee © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

After lunch, we are driven to the Lalique Museum.

Lalique Museum

Situated in the picturesque village of Wingen-sur-Moder, Lalique Museum celebrates the work of the jewelry designer and glassmaker, Rene Lalique.

Lalique founded his workshop here in 1921. Throughout his lifetime, Lalique crafted jewelry, medals, perfume bottles, vases, chandeliers and glass, and we swoon seeing the collection of more than 650 of Lalique’s most stunning creations, which incorporate enamel, precious stones, and glass, gloriously displayed, with fascinating video projections and huge photographs to tell the story of the Lalique dynasty.

*Stunning examples of Renee Lalique’s creations are on view at the Lalique Museum in Wingen-sur-Moder © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

The hallmark of Rene Lalique’s jewelry design was its exquisite precision and tiny detail in the insects, fauna, flowers– you can see the wind fluttering the flower petals, every feather on a bird, a hair comb in the Japanese style has a rising sun.

“All were his ideas, his designs. He designed every piece and could name to whom sold. Renee Lalique was a control freak – he never slept more than 3 hours.”

He was on the forefront of the Art Nouveau movement but was regarded as too modern, too eccentric for Catholic sensibility, she tells us. “Too modern for Cartier. But this became the fashion.”

Rene Lalique drew his inspiration from Egypt, from Japan, from the Middle Ages, but gave these inspirations a totally new expression, his own stamp.

He became famous after winning a gold medal at the 1900 Exposition, a celebration of modernism in which electricity in Paris and the first subway were unveiled, attended by some 50 million visitors.

Rene was as brilliant a businessman as he was an artist, inventor and entrepreneur, pioneering branding, marketing, merchandising techniques. “Every perfumer demanded a new bottle, a special stopper.”

He created a joint advertising/marketing campaign (perhaps the first) with the perfumer, Molinar. “He created demand for the next collection, for perfume, then for toilet water.”

For the 1925 Exposition, he created a17-meter high glass fountain that looked like stone during the day but was lighted at night. “People then didn’t have electricity at home – it was too modern for Paris.” At the exposition’s end, he sold the statues as a limited edition.

We learn how Renee Lalique, who lived from 1860-1945, innovated new techniques and modern mass-production processes. Though Rene knew the process to turn regular glass into crystal (by adding lead), it was his son, Marc, who took over upon his death in 1945, that steered the company into crystal glass production.

There has been a glass factory in Alsace since the 15^th century and they still find pieces. Lalique, who had been producing glass in Paris, came here in 1921 and built a modern factory to produce flat glass (it was cheaper here than Paris and the French government, which had regained control of Alsace after the war, provided funding to build the factory.)

The museum, which was conceived in 2000 and opened in 2011, is housed in an old glass factory that dates from 1750, producing flat glass for windows, that closed in 1868. The Lalique factory that is still in use – the only Lalique factory in the world – no longer has any members of the Lalique family involved.

After three generations of Lalique had led the company, with no heirs to inherit, Rene’s granddaughter, Marie-Claude Lalique, sold the company in 1994 to the Pochet Group; it was acquired in 2008 by Arts et Fragrance, a Swiss group owned by Silvio Denz. (Marie-Claude Lalique died in 2003.)

Because the Swiss bought the factory and exclusive rights to the Lalique name, our guide tells us, it was difficult to create a museum with Lalique name, but the museum, funded by the state, the Alsace region and the village, ultimately won.

Everything is produced here in the factory (which we don’t see) – “a timeless collection,” our guide says.

The delightful tour finishes with a marvelous video showing production in today’s factory. There is also a wonderful shop.

Musee Lalique, 40 rue du Hochberg, Wingen-sur-Moder, phone +33 3 88 89 08 14, https://www.musee-lalique.com/en/

La Petite Pierre

*The 15^th century castle at Le Petite Pierre © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

From here, we drive to the hilltop town of La Petite Pierre where there is a 15^th century castle. It is late in the afternoon (the setting sun makes for gorgeous colors), and the village looks absolutely vacant, abandoned – almost like a movie set. We walk the ramparts of the castle.

*La Petite Pierre seems like a movie set © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Our drive back to Lutzelbourg takes us passed Wingen-sur-Moder, the World War II battleground where American infantry fought with distinction.

*The ruins of Château du Lutzelbourg © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

But our adventure is not over – we drive up to the top of a rocky promontory, 322 meters high, that overlooks the Zorn valley, the town of Lutzelbourg, the canal and the Panache to walk among the ruins of the Château du Lutzelbourg. Built by Pierre de Lutzelbourg in the 11th century, the castle was destroyed in 1523; in 1840, the ruins of the castle were to be sold to build the railway but saved from demolition by Adolf Germain, a notary in Phalsbourg. In 1900, the owner at the time, Eugene Koeberle, excavated the ruins. The ruins we visit are more interesting that the intact structures – especially in the late afternoon light. And what a view!

People can hike up a trail (and down) from the town, and I am itching to hike back down to the Panache, but am discouraged because it is too late in the evening.

*The view from Château du Lutzelbourg © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

We are greeted back on board with “French 75,” a cocktail of gin, champagne, lemon juice and sugar syrup (delicious).

Dinner starts with John Dory served like cerviche, with mint and horseradish in a “veil” gelatin with black lemon, Chef Leo shows us the dried black lemon he uses – it comes from Iran where it is dried for month and presents a smokey, lemon flavor. It is sensational.

*Chef Leo’s John Dory served with mint and horseradish in a “veil” gelatin with black lemon © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

The entrée is a perfectly prepared lamb with truffle and cauliflower with amazing, rich flavors that burst (monkfish is the option for vegetarians)

*Chef Leo’s dinner entree of lamb* *with truffle has amazing, rich flavors that burst © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

The wines are a Beaune Premier Cru Basion, 2017 Domaine Chanson Chardonnay, and Gasies Margaux 2014 Bordeaux. The cheeses tonight include Tomme de Brebis, a Basque-style cheese half cow, half sheep milk; a Munster from Alsace and Bleu d’Auvergne. The dessert is a phenomenal blueberry tart with white chocolate mousse.

*Chef Leo’s blueberry tart with white chocolate mousse © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Chef Leo sits down to chat with us after the meal. The 28-year old is spending his first season on the barge hotel. Born in central France, he knew since he was just four years old that the only job he wanted was to be a chef. “My grandma cooked. I loved eating.” He moved when he was 14 to attend catering school. He spent 7 years in Alsace and 2 years in London learning pastry.

“I’ve been in many places, many helpful places.” He likes the freedom of having his own kitchen, doing his own shopping, creating his own recipes. “When I fail, it’s my fault. If I could, I would be 24 hours in the kitchen.”

*Chef Leo, aboard European Waterways’ Panache, says he loves to experiment with flavors © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

He says he feeds the crew what the guests eat. “They don’t deserve it,” he jokes. “We have a budget for the crew but I pilfer to feed them the same so they understand what I am serving you.”

His dream (of course) is to have his own restaurant, near Colmar in Alsace.

I tell him his plating is gorgeous. He says his friend is a gallerist. “She helped me with art – color, textures, shapes. Presentation is half of the dish.”

I ask his flavor philosophy. “Really clear and simple – not more than 3-4 items on plate. Popping flavor. I’m always trying new stuff. On the barge, I am free to try. Every week I have new ‘guinea pigs.’ I always try to improve myself in the kitchen. It’s best to learn on my own.”

I think we really lucked out on this European Waterways barge hotel canal cruise.

*The Panache in Lutzelbourg as morning fog lifts © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

The next morning, we wake to an atmospheric fog, and as the Panache cruises and I cycle away enroute to Niderviller where the cruise will end, we get a last view of the tops of the ruins of Chateau de Lutzelbourg.

European Waterways, 1-877-879-8808, www.europeanwaterways.com.

EUROPEAN WATERWAYS ALSACE-LORRAINE CANAL CRUISE: STRASBOURG’S CATHEDRAL, WINE TASTING ON ROUTE DES VINS

Next: A Boat Guillotine, Two Tunnels and a Chagall

_______________________

© 2024 Travel Features Syndicate, a division of Workstyles, Inc. All rights reserved. Visit goingplacesfarandnear.com and travelwritersmagazine.com/TravelFeaturesSyndicate/. Blogging at goingplacesnearandfar.wordpress.com and moralcompasstravel.info. Visit instagram.com/going_places_far_and_near and instagram.com/bigbackpacktraveler/ Send comments or questions to FamTravLtr@aol.com. Tweet @TravelFeatures. ‘Like’ us at facebook.com/NewsPhotoFeatures

Cruising, Cultural travel, European travel, Food & Wine, International Travel, luxury travel

European Waterways Alsace-Lorraine Canal Cruise: Strasbourg’s Cathedral, Wine Tasting on Route des Vins

March 31, 2024 krubin723

*Cruising through the allee of trees into Strasbourg on our first morning on European Waterways’ Panache cruise through Alsace-Lorraine © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

By Karen Rubin, Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

Day 2 Krafft to Strasbourg

Our first morning cruising the canals of France’s Alsace-Lorraine aboard European Waterways’ luxury barge hotel, Panache, takes us from Krafft on the Canal de la Marne au Rhin toward Strasbourg. The route brings us through a spectacularly picturesque allee of trees that apparently dates back to the time of Napoleon. The landscaping of this avenue of trees is a straight line with the trees uniform in shape. You have the feeling of floating through Impressionist paintings – it is so exquisitely beautiful, especially with the morning light creating an ethereal tableau.

We cruise through locks 81 to 85. A towpath along the canal has been repurposed for biking and walking and I immediately set out to ride. Captain Brian readies the bikes and puts it on the bank for us – it doesn’t take long to get the hang of stepping on or off the boat as it lifts up or down in the lock. (I quickly learn by mistake to watch the signs that tell you when to cross over the canal to stay on the path.)

*Biking the towpath alongside the Canal de la Marne au Rhin into Strasbourg © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

I soon realize that I bike three times as fast as the boat travels, especially since it also spends time going through various locks, so I can enjoy biking the route, then riding back to a lock as the boat approaches, and get to see the scenery all over again from the perspective of the boat’s sundeck (also, it is usually lunch time – don’t want to miss that).

Lunch this first day is a salad of beet root and goat cheese; chicken with a moelle sauce and polenta, served with Saint Romain Chardonnay from Burgundy and La Baronne Alaric (2014), a Syrah blend from the south of France. The cheeses we get to experience include a cow’s milk blue cheese made from a 1200-year old recipe from Auvergne; a Reblochon from Savoie, made from raw cow milk and aged (not pasteurized) for 6-8 weeks.

*Bikers get ready to get back on the Panache as it comes into a lock on the Canal de la Marne au Rhin © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

We arrive at Strasbourg, where we tie up at a canal at the outer ring of the historic center, Le Petit France, and walk off the boat to explore on our own before meeting up at Le Pont du Corbeau for a walking tour guided by Captain Brian. (I get lost and after getting directions from a local woman, am staring down at my phone when I hear my name as I am literally walking passed our group waiting at the bridge.)

*Le Petit France, Strasbourg’s old city © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Le Pont du Corbeau was originally called the Schindbrucke (Bridge of Tortures): a law from 1411 that specified that anyone sentenced to death be sewn up inside a linen sack and thrown into the river – a practice which continued until 1617. From 1466 onwards, thieves were locked up in a cage on the bridge to be mocked by passersby before being thrown into the River Ill to swim for their lives. In 1502, a stone crucifix was affixed to the beams of the bridge for people convicted of crimes to repent their acts.

I had already had a couple of days in Strasbourg to explore on my own, but really enjoy Captain Brian’s narration.

We walk through Le Petit France, the section we find so charming and picturesque with its painted houses with wood beams, floral arrangements, and immaculate streets. But Captain Brian notes, before the 18^th century, this district would have been the poorest, stinkiest part of town, populated with fishermen, tanners and animals. The structures would have been made with wood beams coated with a varnish made of a mixture of blood and vinegar (“it looks good but stinks”); waste would have been thrown directly into the canal. The closer to the Cathedral, though, the richer you likely would be – the Chamber of Commerce is located a stone’s throw away.

That’s when we come to Place Gutenberg, which provides an entranceway toward the Cathedral. At the center, there is an impressive monument to Johannes Gutenberg, the German inventor of moveable type. Brian tells us that it is said Gutenberg got his inspiration for the printing press from the wine presses he saw when he lived in Strasbourg. (I learn more about this when I return to Strasbourg at the end of the cruise and visit the City historical museum.)

*Riding the carousel in Place Gutenberg, in Strasbourg’s old city* *© Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Gutenberg Place also has a marvelous old-timey carousel and since our fellow passengers, Kathy and Marc, are celebrating their 25^th anniversary today and Kathy has expressed interest in riding it, we whisper to Marc he should take her for a ride.

*Once the tallest building in the world, Strasbourg’s Notre-Dame Cathedral dominates the city and the Alsace-Lorraine region © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

We next walk to Notre-Dame of Strasbourg, a fabulous Cathedral that is considered one of the finest examples of Rayonnant Gothic architecture in Europe, built on a site where a church has stood since the 4-5^th century. Construction began in 1015, was relaunched in 1190, and finished in 1439. Erwin von Steinbach, credited as the main architect, worked on it from 1277 until his death in 1318, continued by his son Johannes and his grandson, Gerlach.

Spectacularly decorated with 300 statutes on the outside and two towering spires supported by two huge pillars, Strasbourg’s Notre-Dame Cathedral is a study in Gothic flamboyance © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

With the bell tower at 142 meters (466 feet) high, Strasbourg’s Cathedral stood as the world’s tallest building for 227 years, from 1647 to 1874. It is still the sixth tallest church in the world, and the tallest structure built entirely in the Middle Ages. It was visible across Alsace, as far off as the Black Forest and the Vosges Mountains, from which the reddish-brown sandstone that gives the cathedral its distinctive color was quarried.

Spectacularly decorated with 300 statutes on the outside and two towering spires supported by two huge pillars it is a study in Gothic flamboyance.

*Strasbourg’s Notre-Dame Cathedral is one of the most impressive of Europe’s cathedrals © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

The major attractions of the Cathedral include the Astronomical Clock, a Renaissance masterpiece, and its stained glass windows.

The Musee de L’Oeurvre Notre-Dame just across the square, which I visited, is where you can see the original statuary and art that decorated the Cathedral.

*The Palais Rohan, which Louis XIV built for the Bishop, today houses three important Strasbourg museums – Fine Arts, Decorative Arts and Archaeology © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Also across the square – which is a delightfully festive place – there is the Palais Rohan, which Louis XIV built for the Bishop to cement his bond with the Catholic Church. Today it houses three important museums – Fine Arts, Decorative Arts and Archaeology – which I have visited.

We continue to wander on our own, exploring the narrow cobblestone streets, returning to the ship by 7 pm for dinner.

*One of Chef Leo’s fabulous culinary creations aboard the Panache © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Dinner features tuna tartare with ponzu (a citrus-based sauce commonly used in Japanese cuisine prepared with soy sauce, lime and fennel), served in a rice paper cup with edible flowers (marvelous – so flavorful but not spicey); octopus in black sauce (squid ink), marinated and baked in the oven with eggplant (it took seven hours to cook). The wines are Santenay La Forge (2021) from Cote D’Or; the red is Mercurey, a Bourgogne from Louis Jadot, pairing perfectly with the meal.

The cheeses tonight include the “Queen of Cheese,” Brie de Meaux, “the most popular cheese in the world,” a salty, creamy cow’s milk cheese from Ile-de-France served uncooked and unpressed that you are supposed to hold in your mouth as it melts; Langres, a cow’s milk cheese from Champagne-Ardenne (the rind is designed to be served with Champagne put into a cross hatch on the top which is absorbed and moistens the cheese); and Selles-sur-Cher,a goat’s milk cheese from the Loire Valley, which is dusted with charcoal, to protect and seal the shape, that has a mineral flavor of rind and a briny, tangy center, served with honey.

*Panache’s Captain Brian demonstrates how to slice open a Champagne bottle with a saber, to celebrate an occasion © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Then, Captain Brian surprises Marc and Kathy with a ritual to celebrate their 25^th anniversary – he removes a saber from a box and shows Marc how to slice open a champagne bottle. Then we toast the couple with Champagne. Marc is far more thrilled with this anniversary gesture than riding the carousel.

We overnight in Strasbourg.

Day 3 Strasbourg to Waltenheim-sur-Zorn

While still moored in Strasbourg this morning, we are taken on a scenic drive into the rolling Vosges hills on La Route des Vins d’Alsace, the oldest wine route in France.

*The gorgeous Alsatian landscape on La Route des Vins © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Instead of visiting a conventional vineyard and winery, Captain Brian takes us to Domaine Lissner in the village of Wolxheim to meet a renegade, a true maverick: Bruno Schloegel is on a self-appointed mission to prove how wine can be and should be produced truly naturally, truly sustainably, to protect the environment and the planet.

*Vintner Bruno Schloegel of Domaine Lissner is proud of his “savage” vineyard where he is on a mission to return to natural cultivation © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Bruno’s neighbors were not happy (and thought him fou) – his vineyard, which he took over in 2001 from his Uncle Clement Lissner, is a wild tangle of vines in contrast to their manicured rows of pruned vines – but some have come around. He acknowledges his yields are not as great, but it costs him a fraction to operate because he doesn’t use any machinery, any extra energy, or any irrigation or pumps, and spends less on labor. He estimates he saves 600 man-hours of work and some E60,000.

Bruno, who was a university professor and sociologist, has a deep reverence for the past and a deep concern for the future. Vines have been cultivated here since the 7^th century, his family has been here since the 17^th century, and this vineyard has been in his family for generations. Wine stock, he tells us, can last 800 years. “I had to imagine 2-3 generations from now,” he tells us. “I am responsible to the next generation; these vines link us from the past to the future. We have to find new ways to live in nature.”

Since taking over the vineyard, he has spent the past 22 years “rebuilding the chains of life – the birds, insects and what is under soil. It is a complex approach. I want to take you in our world, our way of thinking. Our wines are living wines- the result of animals, plants – living systems” served non-filtered. “We had to wait up to 10 years for the soil to be alive. We didn’t plant, didn’t treat, don’t put pressure on the wine stock.”

It took that long for the natural plants, animals, insects to come back and for the soil to be rejuvenated. He depends on the birds, spiders, insects, lizards to maintain the ecosystem. “If you would have to invent this machine (a lizard) to wait for fly – it would cost a lot,” he half-jokes. He stresses the importance of biodiversity, “each place another world.”

Manicured vineyards, Bruno insists, masks poor soil. “They are not close to a living system. They are ‘slave’ to the plow. What are we doing to the planet?” In contrast, “We don’t disturb the living cycle.”

He acknowledges that this was an experiment in geological behavior, but insists, “Natural methods produce more resilient vines,” and he will be in much better shape to meet the inevitable challenges of climate change. (Researchers estimate that as much as 70 percent of the world’s wine regions will become too warm this century, including as much as 90 percent of wine’s best traditional regions in Spain, Italy, Greece and Southern California.)

“Energy is not cheap – especially with climate change,” he says. “But even if the climate changes, our system will adapt. We have to find new ways – with this experiment, I can say it works.”

Sounding a bit like a Buddhist monk of winemaking, he says, “More is sometimes less. They cut from the human, machine point of view, not the vine’s point of view” and speaks of “happy vines” free to live their own cycle. “I listen to the wine stock. I let the birds have first growth of grape.” He shows us a plant at the head of a row that presents like a natural cup for birds to drink so they don’t come to vines.

“We regard the vines like a relationship with a living being. We used to have this relationship. It’s a good way to renew the relationship in next century.”

“A harvest is like a wedding – a high moment. We prepare the bride for wedding – we cut only what is dangerous, prune just to make it safe. He says constantly trimming the leaves, prevents the vines from reaching the end of their natural cycle. “There is a time when the leaves should stop growing, so all the energy of the plant goes to grape. But what they do is cut leaves just to make sugar.”

*Bruno Schloegel of Domaine Lissner in the wine cellar where the production is completely unmechanized and natural © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

From the field, he takes us next into his wine cellar. He spent four years designing it, another year to find an architect and 40 pages of plans to build a sustainable system that relied on gravity and natural temperature control without the aid of machines or external energy. “We wanted a vertical effluent process to let yeast ferment the juice. The old system had too many steps.”

Back in his tasting room, we get to sample a dozen of his wines.

*The Panache guests get a private tasting of Domaine Lissner’s wines © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

We drive back to the Panache where lunch is being served: a cold black tomato and cucumber soup; spinach and cheese quiche; smoked salmon, horseradish; marinated seabass; strawberry and goat cheese, and chocolate mousse. The wine includes Chateau Aspras, LesTrois Freres, the third generation family winery; a premiere Rose (2022) from Cotes de Provence, a lovely light wine so suited for lunch.

*The Panache cruises past the European Parliament in Strasbourg © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

We pull away from our mooring in Strasbourg to continue cruising, taking us passed the impressive European Parliament building on the outskirts of Strasbourg and on through the Brumath Forest to the picturesque village of Waltenheim-sur-Zorn.

*The gorgeous Alsatian countryside just outside Waltenheim-sur-Zorn © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

I bike from Lock 51 to 44 (it takes just a half hour), back and forth, thrilled by the pastoral landscapes.

*European Waterways’ luxury hotel barge Panache cruises into Waltenheim-sur-Zorn © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Tonight’s dinner is in a charming restaurant in the village, A L’Eoile, which, though very good, cannot compare with Chef Leo’s creations – clearly we have been spoiled in just these few days. We also get a view to local life – a 70^th birthday celebration is going on and the dancing line carries into the street.

*Waltenheim-sur-Zorn at night © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

As we have already seen, the Alsace-Lorraine is fiercely French, but the German heritage (having occupied the region multiple times) cannot be denied – in architecture, in cooking, in language.

It is as Bruno said, The Alsace-Lorraine region has a culture that is an inescapably a melding of French and German – “still in the way of thinking, drinking, growing, living together”.

*European Waterways’ hotel barge, Panache, moored for the night in the charming village of Waltenheim-sur-Zorn in the Alsace-Lorraine © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

A few of us go for a walk in the night – the view of the boat on the canal is breathtaking.

European Waterways, 1-877-879-8808, www.europeanwaterways.com.

Next: 3 Musketeers Intrigue in Saverne, Lalique in Lutzelbourg

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© 2024 Travel Features Syndicate, a division of Workstyles, Inc. All rights reserved. Visit goingplacesfarandnear.com and travelwritersmagazine.com/TravelFeaturesSyndicate/. Blogging at goingplacesnearandfar.wordpress.com and moralcompasstravel.info. Visit instagram.com/going_places_far_and_near and instagram.com/bigbackpacktraveler/ Send comments or questions to FamTravLtr@aol.com. Tweet @TravelFeatures. ‘Like’ us at facebook.com/NewsPhotoFeatures

Cruising, Cultural travel, European travel

European Waterways’ Panache Hotel Barge Cruises France’s Alsace-Lorraine Canals in Luxury

March 24, 2024 krubin723

*European Waterways’ Panache hotel barge cruises the Marne-Rhin canal through the historic city of Saverne in the Alsace-Lorraine region of France © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

By Karen Rubin, Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

Reflecting back, it is so interesting that a trip that is so absolutely relaxing can also be filled with activity, interesting, even astonishing, attractions, scenic sights, and cuisine that is Michelin-star caliber, and how, traveling slower than 3 mph, you can see so much, experience so much in a day.

This is European Waterways’ six-night/seven-day Marne-Rhin Canal cruise through France’s Alsace & Lorraine Region, aboard its hotel barge, Panache. The boat sleeps 12 and has a crew of six, so pampering is an understatement – this is like a floating luxury boutique hotel.

*European Waterways’ hotel barge, Panache cruising the Marne-Rhin Canal through France’s Alsace & Lorraine © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Over the course of our cruise, we have guided tours of charming, colorful, historic cities including Strasbourg, Saverne and Sarrebourg, visit the Rene Lalique crystal museum, see Marc Chagall’s largest and grandest stained glass work, go through a boat “guillotine” and ascend a remarkable boat elevator, have a private tasting at what can only be described as a renegade/maverick winery on the Route des Vins d’Alsace, and so many more surprises that delight.

*Preparing to get back on the Panache as it rises in the lock, after biking the towpath © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

The slow pace of the barge proves an advantage because I also get to bike along the towpath the entire length of the route, return to the boat, and see the scenery again from a different perspective of the elevated perch of the boat deck.

The pace is so relaxed, and to be candid, the level of luxury and pampering so great, you don’t even realize how much you have done in a– whether it’s biking the route, sightseeing and visiting villages, historic and cultural places, enjoying fine wine and cuisine, and still have time to just hang out and watch the landscape go by and enjoy the company of fellow travelers.

We do so much in a day, it is mind-boggling to realize (well after the trip), what short distances we actually travel each day (several of the excursions involve us being picked up by van where the boat docks), and where we were the day before and will be the day after. Time and distance just kind of melt.

I have cleverly arranged to arrive two days early in Strasbourg, where the Alsace-Lorraine cruise starts – this takes into account any unexpected flight or travel delays, and gives me two half days and one full day in this picturesque old city (we actually will be visiting here with the cruise on our first full day).

Captain Brian picks us up at the Regent Petit France Hotel, which sits astride the canal with the most picturesque view of the historic district, and chauffeurs us to where the hotel barge is tied up at Krafft, where we are greeted by the crew of six with Premier Cru FrereJohn Freres Champagne and hors d’oeurves, and introduces to the boat, the crew and our fellow traveling companions for the week.

The salon/dining room is absolutely stunning, with comfortable sofas and chairs, a long dining table, large picture windows that let the light and scenery in.

Panache is a hotel barge that has been fitted out in traditional yacht style with brass and mahogany fittings and polished hardwood floors in the spacious public areas and very comfortable cabin accommodation. The salon/dining room is absolutely stunning, with comfortable sofas and chairs, a long dining table, large picture windows that let the natural light and scenery in. The separated dining area is roomy, providing a congenial setting for up to 12 to enjoy the gourmet meals and fine wines served on board at the grand table. Here we also have access to free Wifi,

Panache accommodates 12 passengers in six spacious cabins (larger than the room at the delightful Hotel Hannong I had just left in Strasbourg), that can be configured for twin or double-bed, with plush linens, plenty of lights and electric plug-ins, our own temperature control, room to store our clothes, and private bathroom (double sinks! oversized shower!). Housekeeping comes in twice a day and leaves a chocolate on the pillow at night. Truly a boutique hotel room that floats us from destination to destination in absolute luxury.

*European Waterways’ hotel barge, Panache has just six spacious cabins © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Panache has a very comfortable sun deck with lounging chairs and table and chairs, from which you can enjoy the scenery, have cocktails and dine alfresco, and heated spa pool. There also is a plentiful number of bicycles which I take advantage of each day, virtually biking the entire route (and then getting back on board to enjoy it from the perch of the boat).

Each evening, Captain Brian (who is also the general manager, the cruise director, our tour guide and sometimes the pilot and just 25 years old) orients us to the boat and our cruise, especially the invitation that the crew “never lets a glass go empty, so if you don’t want a refill of wine, put your hand over it” (and they are only half kidding, as we discover). Each evening, he orients us to what we will do the next day – whether to visit a museum or a guided walking tour – and each day is distinguished by a special highlight.

You expect picturesque scenery and to visit fascinating cultural attractions but what is totally unexpected is the astonishing quality of the cuisine that we are treated to by Chef Leo – a young chef who, we learn, was a contestant on France’s “Top Chef”. Over the course of our six days of cruising, we experience Michelin-star quality dining, as Chef Leo enjoys experimenting. As he jokes, each cruise brings him more “guinea pigs”.

*Chef Leo’s tuna tartare © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

His cooking is really distinctive – it is not any particular cuisine, necessarily. He has a vibrant taste palate, likes a lot of flavor without overwhelming the actual flavor of the main item, and most important, is never too rich. He is really imaginative, creative, and the presentations are stunning. There are three courses for lunch and dinner, so each individual course is not too much, but not too little, either, with a different red and white wine accompanying each, and three different cheeses to finish.

*Lunch and dinner finish with three cheeses to sample © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Each meal is an event, an experience. Chef Leo comes out to explain each course, and Emily (from England) or Martyna (from Poland) introduce the wines – where produced, the vintage, the pedigree – and the cheeses (which have fascinating stories). By the end of the cruise, including the tasting at a most distinctive (progressive) winery that Captain Brian has found, we must have tasted more than 36 wines and 36 cheeses from throughout France – each perfectly paired for what is being served to bring out the best flavors.

*Panache’s crew: Chef Leo, Captain Brian, pilot Bernard, Emily, Martyna and mate Akosh. The European Waterways canal cruises feature a 1:2 crew to guest ratio © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

They do their best to school us in the complicated classifications of French wines. We learn about Grand Cru and Premier Cru, which refer to official designations of vineyards and villages in a specific French region where the grapes are grown. Also “terroir” which describes the complete natural environment (ecosystem) in which a particular wine is produced, including factors such as the soil, geography and topography, rootstock and climate that impart the characteristic taste and flavor to the wine. We learn to recognize the region a wine comes from by the bottle – Alsace wines are served in a long, thin bottle, and that France has official appellations that wines and cheeses can use – so Champagne must be from Champagne, Bordeaux from Bordeaux. I may not have become a wine expert, but all the wines we enjoy are of superior quality and significantly, are paired so perfectly with the food.

*Each European Waterways cruise features a private wine tasting. We visit Lissner Winery to learn about pioneering sustainable practices © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

When we arrive back from an afternoon tour, we are welcomed aboard with some sort of cocktail –one day it is Mimosa, another it is French 75 (an elderberry gin spritzer).

We are small enough group that our wishes are usually accommodated – Hylton, who comes from Australia, expresses a desire for steak and Sue, his wife, wishes for passionfruit crème brulee – and don’t you know, we have both for lunch – with Leo doing a cooking demonstration in the morning as we cruise to show how he creates the crème brulee. It is a first for him creating crème brulee with passionfruit and he takes it as a sort of challenge. We watch him create it, with his precise weighing and measuring, and, later, just before serving, firing it up with a torch.

*Chef Leo, assisted by Captain Brian gives us a cooking demonstration of his passionfruit creme brulee as we cruise on the Panache © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

In fact, the one evening we dine in a pleasant village restaurant, the meal, although very good, does not compare with Chef Leo’s creations. Clearly, we have been spoiled in just these few days.

Captain Brian gives us the safety talk – noting that some of the bridges we go under are so low, we will have to sit down and the bridge has to be taken down; the canals are so narrow, with barely an inch on either side, we need to keep hands inside the boat. And don’t block the navigator’s view of the crossbars at the front of the boat. There are life jackets, an emergency red call button in our cabins (don’t use it to call for a sandwich, it will wake everyone). And another thing, Captain Brian insists: never say the name of the animal with the bushy tail and big ears and eats carrots on a boat – it’s bad luck.

*Head down, hands in the boat.* *Cruising the Marne-Rhin Canal through France’s Alsace & Lorraine requires skill – with only inches to spare to get through the locks and bridges © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

For such a small contingent, we bring an interesting variety as well as commonality. One couple is from Australia where they have an 8000-hectare farm (8 km across); another couple is from Australia as well, where he was a wine salesman and since retiring, teaches water aerobics (I have to mention he is 95 and has the body of a fit man half his age); another couple is from Minnesota who also have a farm; another couple comes from Georgia where he is a lawyer and she was a county commissioner. (All of us happen to be senior citizens but young couples, families and solo travelers would enjoy the cruise, and it is possible to charter.)

This first evening, Chef Leo’s talents become apparent: a carrot and orange salad to start with a kind of pesto sauce that surprises with flavor; roasted seabass with leek and champagne sauce, and dessert of peach tart. This evening the wines include Famille Hugel, an Alsace Pinot Blanc, 2019, and an Alsace red, Boitt Geyl Pinot Noir, 2017 (producing wines since 1775!), that pair superbly with the flavors.

The meal finishes with three cheeses: Camembert, “King of Cheeses,” from Normandy, with a golden color and buttery texture and a strong aroma (“We serve it on the first night to get it out of the refrigerator”); Morbier, a cow cheese from Franche-Comte, which traces back to the 1800s and, legend has it, a method of disguising the size of the cheese within charcoal in order to avoid paying tax; and Selles-sur-Cher, a goat cheese from the Loire Valley which, we learn is a cheese deprived of light and oxygen for 38 weeks, and is served in an edible rind.

Notably, Chef Leo doesn’t necessarily pre-arrange his menus in advance because he purchases his items fresh, bursting with flavor.

*European Waterways’ hotel barge, Panache, in Strasbourg, where we can just step off the boat to explore the city © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Hotel barging offers an immersive and all-inclusive “gentle voyage of discovery” of the culture, history, fine wine, and gourmet cuisine of the destinations. You cruise right into villages, step off the boat, and can wander into neighborhoods and countrysides, where people live.

European Waterways, which celebrates the 50^th anniversary of its founding by Derek Banks and John Wood-Dow this year, was one of the early pioneers of hotel barging on France’s canals. They helped ignite a new niche the travel industry and cruising that proved instrumental in the revitalization of Europe’s intricate network of scenic canals and inland waterways as tourism destinations. Like our Erie Canal of New York State, these canals were no longer being used for commercial shipping; tourism and recreational boating has revitalized them, and the villages along the route.

This fascinating network of smaller canals allows for flexibility, spontaneity and ample opportunity to hop off and explore the beautiful surroundings by bicycle or on foot. The itineraries are built around daily, chauffeured excursions “off the beaten path” to wine tastings and visits to stately homes, historic and cultural treasures.

Panache cruises in Holland in the spring when the flowers are in full bloom, and in Champagne in May & June (Champagne itineraries typically include Brie cheese tastings, a tour of the Cathedral at Reims, Epernay and tastings at renowned champagne houses). In summer and autumn, Panache cruises the Alsace & Lorraine.

European Waterways launched its first Christmas Markets Cruises aboard Panache in 2023 in the Alsace & Lorraine region of France. This 6-night/7-day luxury barge cruise visits the Christmas Markets of Strasbourg, Colmar, and Haugenau, a chocolate museum, a glass bauble factory which is said to be the home of the traditional tree decoration (For more information, visit https://www.europeanwaterways.com/themed/christmas-market-cruises/)

With a fleet of 18 (with the recent launch of its ultra deluxe vessel, Kir Royale), that span nine countries, European Waterways is one of the largest luxury hotel barging companies in Europe.

European Waterways, 1-877-879-8808, www.europeanwaterways.com.

Next: The Panache Visits Strasbourg

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Adventure Travel, Biking Tours, Cruising, Cultural travel, Family Travel, International Travel, Outdoors Adventures, Summer Vacations, Where to Go Next

The World is Your Oyster: Summer Vacations with Pizzazz

June 11, 2023 krubin723 1 Comment

*The dramatic reward after a four-day 26-mile trek along the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, Peru © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

By Karen Rubin, Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

Bucket List Summer Adventures

For those who want to ditch the tame in favor of a series of thrilling experiences you can complete on your summer break, here are trips with pizzazz for you:

1. Central Utah Backcountry Cycling: Central Utah has one of the largest stretches of true backcountry left in the nation. Escape Adventures’ six-day cycling tour goes eastward through contrasting desert scenery and high alpine forests along Utah Highway 12 (one of America’s most scenic highways) to Capitol Reef National Park. (https://escapeadventures.com/tour/utah-escalante-and-capitol-reef-national-park-road-bike-tour/)

2. Yellowstone Ranch Getaway: Get away and give back during a stay at the historic O.T.O. Dude Ranch on the edge of Yellowstone National Park. Montana’s first dude ranch offers classic adventures like hiking, horseback riding, fly-fishing, archery, sport shooting and more, as well as locally inspired cuisine and cozy cabins. Proceeds from every stay go to preservation efforts at the National Register of Historic Places-listed ranch. (https://trueranchcollection.com/yellowstone-pop-up/)

3. Galapagos, Andes + Amazon: Discover the enchanting Galapagos Islands at Scalesia Galapagos Lodge, explore the Amazon Rainforest at Sacha Lodge and experience the Ecuadorian Andes at Hacienda Piman, all in a 15-day tour. Learn about endemic flora and fauna, hike near active volcanoes, paddle tannin-rich blackwater creeks and explore the highlands of the Andes. (https://www.sachalodge.com/programs/#galapagos-programs)

4. Wine + Bike Piedmont: The Langa and Monferrato regions of Piedmont are in one of the most important wine production areas in Italy and received UNESCO World Heritage status in 2014. Tourissimo’s Piedmont Barolo cycling tour takes you into the heart of these regions, over rolling hills covered with vineyards and past ancient castles and hidden hilltop hamlets. (https://www.tourissimo.travel/piedmont-wine-region-cycling-tour)

*The amazement of seeing the Grand Prismatic at Yellowstone National Park* *© Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

5. Jackson Hole Glamping: Fireside Resort offers luxuriously outfitted tiny house rental units designed by Wheelhaus a short distance from Grand Teton National Park, making it the perfect basecamp for summer adventures. Experience whitewater rafting, hiking through the Tetons and revel in the wonder of Yellowstone National Park’s geothermal features. (https://www.firesidejacksonhole.com/)

6. North Cascades Traverse: A new five-day trip from Wildland Trekking combines iconic North Cascades National Park backpacking and a stay at a remote lodge with no road access on Washington’s Lake Chelan. Backpack over alpine passes and through pristine wilderness to the lodge, then hike to views of the Stehekin Valley before returning to civilization by boat. (https://wildlandtrekking.com/trips/stehekin-lodge-backpacking-trip/)

7. Patagonia Fjords Cruise: Book a nine-day voyage through Chilean Patagonia with Adventure Life and set sail among stunning fjords, islands, glaciers, peaks and wildlife. Visit Puerto Cisnes, San Rafael Bay and Glacier, the Gulf of Penas, the isolated village of Puerto Eden, the Strait of Magellan, Tierra del Fuego and the Beagle Channel, ending in Ushuaia, Argentina. (https://www.adventure-life.com/patagonia/cruises/17283/patagonia-chilean-fjords)

*Go whitewater rafting in Big Sky, Montana © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

8. Big Sky Summer Fun: A stay at The Wilson Hotel in Big Sky, Montana, offers proximity to Yellowstone National Park’s natural wonders and wildlife, plus opportunities to hike through shaded forests and wildflower-filled meadows, float or fly fish clear, cool waters, experience the adrenaline rush of lift-served mountain biking. (https://thewilsonhotel.com/)

9. National Parks RV Trip: Blacksford rents fully stocked Mercedes-Benz Sprinter overland adventure vehicles from Winnebago with an all-inclusive pricing model that includes unlimited miles, bedding, kitchen and bath supplies, a free annual pass to the national parks, 24-hour roadside assistance and no generator fees. (https://www.blacksford.com/)

10. Yellowstone Family Rafting and Riding: This three-day whitewater rafting and horseback-riding package from Flying Pig Adventures offers families the opportunity to experience the Yellowstone National Park area like never before. The thrill of witnessing one of nature’s most iconic environments, tackling rough terrain on horseback and running class III rapids cannot be found anywhere else. (https://www.flyingpigrafting.com/3-day-yellowstone-adventure)

Looking for more adventure? Check out the itineraries in the U.S. from REI Adventure Travel (rei.com, 800-622-2236) and G Adventures (gadventures.com, 888-800-4100).

Biking Holidays

Biking trips are my favorite for the combination of experiences they offer: seeing destinations close-hand, most often off-the-beaten track out of busy urban areas; at a pace where you see a lot and do a lot but slow enough to really see and do; where there is a physical and emotional satisfaction having pedaled the distance.

Operators today offer guided tours (ideal for solo travelers) as well as self-guided (where they give you the route, the inns or hotels, and ferry your luggage point to point but you are on your own) all over the world. And don’t be deterred by concern for the distance or the hills – many operators offer e-bikes as an option.

*Bike the scenic Bruges-Amsterdam route and stay on a boat, with Boat Bike Tours © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Boat Bike Tours, based in Amsterdam, (we took their Bruges-Amsterdam tour last summer) offers a selection of itineraries in Holland, but also the region, and in addition to boat-bike trips, have sail-bike trips, and cities and nature tours (US tel.203-814-1249
info@boatbiketours.com, www.boatbiketours.com).

Discovery Bicycle Tours (we took their Maine Coastal trip, and this year their Quebec Eastern Townships) has a long list of cycling vacations in the United States (Idaho Trails tour is one of its most popular), Canada, Europe, Vietnam, Cambodia, New Zealand & Chile including one that is particularly interesting to me, England: Cotswolds & Stonehenge Bike Tour. As we write this, there were still spaces left on Lake Champlain Islands, Empire State Trail, Stowe Bike & Brew Weekend, Minnesota Rail Trails, Washington Cascades Trails, Idaho Trails departures, (tours@discoverybicycletours.com, 800-257-2226, discoverybicycletours.com).

Wilderness Voyageurs (traveled with them on their Mickelson Trail & The Badlands Bike Tour in South Dakota; they’ve introduced tours on New York’s own Empire State Trail bike tour as well as Olympic Peninsula bike tour in Washington State), plus New Mexico, , bike@wilderness-voyageurs.com, 724.329.1000, 800.272.4141, wilderness-voyageurs.com)

*Biking through Badlands National Park, South Dakota, with Wilderness Voyageurs © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

BikeTours.com specializes in European itineraries, including guided, self-guided, and boat-and-bike tours, with excellent value. Among the more unusual is the UNESCO Sites of Albania (which I took some years ago with an e-bike); active tours like Southern Fyn: A Tour Around Denmark’s Fairytale Island and Pearls of Dalmatia by Bike and Boat, Romantica and leisure tours like Poland’s Masurian Lake District (Upscale Lodging). BikeTours.com is showcasing six 6 and 7-night self-guided bike tours showcasing Europe’s most beautiful vineyards and wine-growing regions: Rioja: Hidden Spain – Land of Wine, Burgundy Wine Trails: Beaune to Macon on the “Voie Verte”; German Rivers, Wines & Cycle Paths by Bike and Boat; Wine & Bike in Hungary’s Balaton Uplands; Croatian Vineyards and Villages of Undiscovered Istria; Tuscan Wine Classic: Pienza to Castellina via Siena. They have also introduced a new series of day trips. (biketours.com, 833-216-0635)

*Biking among UNESCO sites in Albania with BikeTours.com (e-bike option recommended) © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

DuVine Cycling + Adventure Co. is appealing to scholars, curious explorers and lifelong learners on these three bike trips, with every mile imbued with history. Not only do the landscapes of Scotland, Normandy, and the Cotswolds feel frozen-in-time, but each place played a part in shaping the world as we know it—through theaters of war, royal revolutions, ruins of the Roman Empire, and powerful clans and castles. Duvine has an expansive catalog of up-scale bike tours (888 396 5383, duvine.com)

Butterfield & Robinson has always been known for high-end, elegant biking trips. Itineraries include Burgundy Wine Country Biking; Piemonte Wine Country Biking; Chile Wine Country Biking; Vienna to Budapest Wine Country biking; Spanish Wine Country; Tuscany wine Country (seeing a pattern?) (866.551.9090, www.butterfield.com)

Backroads was founded in 1979 by Tom Hale and has been a leading innovator in active and adventure travel every since. Active adventures highlight the special character of each destination. The company offers Biking, Walking & Hiking and Multi-Adventure Tours; Active Ocean & River Cruises, Active Safari, Active Culinary and Snow Adventures; and Dolce Tempo trips for travel at a more relaxed pace. Also Private Trips and Family Trips designed for three distinct age groups: Families with Teens & Kids (best for ages 9+), Families with Older Teens & 20s and Families with Young Adults (backroads.com, 800-462-2848)

Trek Travel is more for hard-core, offering mountain, off-road, gravel trips (Girona, Swiss Alps, Tuscany, Vermont), Ride Camps, and even experience the Women’s Tour de France with VIP race viewings and access to one of the best women’s professional teams, Trek-Segafredo, and get to ride on the route New 3 & 4-day bike tours in places such as San Diego, Santa Barbara and Vermont. Also, self-guided and trips with a boost, e-bike (Croatia, Mallorca Island,Glacier) (trektravel.com, 866-464-8735)

On the Water

Cruising is fun but we prefer cruising with a twist: small ship, river cruises, barges, canal boats, houseboat experiences.

European Waterways, a luxury hotel barge cruising company, offers an immersive and all-inclusive “gentle voyage of discovery” focusing upon the culture, history, fine wine, and gourmet cuisine of the cruise regions in nine countries. With a 6-to-20-person capacity and 1:2 crew ratio, European Waterways cruises inland waterways that are inaccessible to larger vessels. This fascinating network of smaller canals allows for flexibility, spontaneity, and ample opportunity to hop off and explore the beautiful surroundings via bicycle or on foot, plus daily, chauffeured excursions “off the beaten track” to a wide variety of attractions and activities, from wine tastings to private tours of stately homes. 877-879-8808 in the U.S., 1-877-574-3404 in Canada, or visit www.europeanwaterways.com

UnCruise Adventures operates boutique yachts and small boats carrying 22-86 guests on voyages in Alaska, Hawaiian Islands, Mexico’s Sea of Cortés, Columbia & Snake Rivers, Coastal Washington, Galápagos, Costa Rica, Panama, Belize, and Colombia. (uncruise.com, 888-642-6745).

You also can’t beat Lindblad Expeditions for expeditionary-style cruising and soft-adventure trips, famous for pioneering Galapagos and Antarctica, Georgia and the Falklands, on its specially designed ships, National Geographic Orion, and National Geographic islander II. (expeditions.com, 888-667-2830).

*GoGalapagos’ cruise aboard the 100-passenger Legend affords a sensational family adventure experience © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

For the most perfect family cruise/travel/adventure experience we have had, set your compass to the Galapagos. Go Galapagos is a cruise and tour operator offering excellent price/quality value for 3, 4, 7 and -night inclusive cruises (two guaranteed weekly departures), You can also combine the cruise with land packages in the Galapagos, in Ecuador, and in Peru. In addition to the 100-passsenger Galapagos Legend, Go Galapagos also has two yacht-style ships, Coral I and Coral II. (www.GoGalapagos.com, 888 50 KLEIN).

*Swimming with sea lions in the Galapagos on the GoGalapagos Legend cruise © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Want to skipper your own yacht, or charter a boat with a captain and crew? Dream Yacht Worldwide, a pioneer in making sailing and sea travel accessible employs more than 600 people in 31 countries and operates in 50 destinations worldwide, with a fleet of more than 900 monohulls and catamarans. Dream Yacht Charter offers one of the most diverse fleets of sailing, yacht and boats, If offers skippered and crewed charters (dreamyachtcharter.com)

*The marvelously scenic and special time-travel experience of sailing one of the historic Maine Windjammers, like the Stephen Tabor, on Penobscot Bay © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Another really special cruise experience is sailing on one of the historic vessels of the Maine Windjammer fleet that sail the Penobscot Bay. Each is distinctive (and on a few occasions during the season (Windjammer Gam – June 12, Great Schooner Race- July 7, Camden Windjammer Festival – Sept 1-2, and WoodenBoat Sail-In – Sept 12, they gather together in scenes that evoke the Great Age of Sail. Each vessel and each cruise is different (many are themed): Windjammer Angelique, Schooner American Eagle, Schooner Grace Bailey, Schooner Heritage, Schooner J. & E. Riggin, Schooner Ladona, Schooner Lewis R. French, Schooner Mary Day, Schooner Stephen Taber (info@sailmainecoast.com, www.sailmainecoast.com, 800-807-9463.)

Enjoy cruising at your own pace, exploring the iconic (and calm) Erie Canal, captaining your way through locks, docks, and under lift bridges. Erie Canal Adventures, out of Macedon, NY,provides completely equipped 34 foot Lockmasters, ideal for 1 couple (some prime summer/fall dates available to charter) and 41 and 42 foot Lockmasters that sleep 4-6 people (limited dates available in September). These are set up like a floating houseboat with bedroom, bath/shower, fully equipped galley kitchen, remarkably easy to operate. (www.ErieCanalAdventures.com, 315-986-3011)

*Cruising New York State’s Erie Canal on one of Erie Canal Adventures’ Lockmasters © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Solo Travel

Traveling solo is one of the big trends in travel. Bike tours are an excellent choice (I can attest). So are rafting trips, river, expeditionary, and small-ship cruises and canalboats.

Western River Expeditions suggests rafting itineraries – Grand Canyon, Colorado River, Salmon River – that have proved popular for solo travelers (https://www.westernriver.com, 866-904-1160).

Tour operators are also embracing solo travelers, offering departures that do not add the single supplement, for example, or matching up travel companions. EF Go Ahead Tours (GAT), a premier provider of culturally immersive travel experiences, announced it is introducing four new tours, for a total of 14, to its increasingly popular Solo-Only portfolio. EF Go Ahead Tours, is running its Semi-Annual Sale through June 29: Book a 2023, 2024, or 2025 tour by June 29 to lock in the lowest price and take up to $400 off of the cost of their trip. June 20 and 21, the Summer Solstice Flash Sale will offer Up to $800 off remaining 2023 tours. To make travel even more accessible, EF Go Ahead’s flexible booking policies including AutoPay lets you hold a spot with $99 down and wait 60 days before your first interest-free payment. (www.goaheadtours.com, 800-590-1161).

Skyscanner Savings Generator

Global travel site Skyscanner has launched the new and expanded summer edition of its Savings Generator tool to help travelers save big this summer.

The global travel sitecurrently searches 80 billion prices every day, so Skyscanner’s experts have crunched the numbers to share some simple dos and don’ts for grabbing the best bargain this summer.

Put your desired route into the Savings Generator to see if it’s available. If not, bookmark the page and check back because Skyscanner adds new destinations to the list.

To provide a comparison, the Savings Generator starts by displaying the average monthly flight price for your destination. From there, it shows you the best time to book your flight and the cheapest day to travel on. If you’d like to consider a less-expensive alternative, the Generator displays different destinations, their average monthly flight price for travel, and the best day to go in order to save money. (See more: https://www.skyscanner.com/tips-and-inspiration/best-time-to-book-savings-generator)

*Getting there: Skyscanner has beefed up its* ***Savings Generator to find the best fares for summer travel © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com***

Travel the last week of the school summer holidays (instead of the first) and save 31%

To save big this summer, travel on a Sunday (most of the time)!

Travelers who are flexible and can fly on less popular days of the week can save up to 5% on the cost of their flights this July and August according to Skyscanner’s Summer Savings Generator. An added bonus is that airports are likely to be less crowded too. As 73% of Americans share, they would be willing to change the day and/ or week of their summer vacations to save this year, it really pays to do your research by Use Skyscanner’s Whole Month view.

There are still inexpensive deals – just search EVERYWHERE for the very best prices

To let Skyscanner’s algorithm find the cheapest deal, just type in ‘Everywhere’ with your travel dates.

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© 2023 Travel Features Syndicate, a division of Workstyles, Inc. All rights reserved. Visit goingplacesfarandnear.com, www.huffingtonpost.com/author/karen-rubin, and travelwritersmagazine.com/TravelFeaturesSyndicate/. Blogging at goingplacesnearandfar.wordpress.com and moralcompasstravel.info. Visit instagram.com/going_places_far_and_near and instagram.com/bigbackpacktraveler/ Send comments or questions to FamTravLtr@aol.com. Tweet @TravelFeatures. ‘Like’ us at facebook.com/KarenBRubin

Adventure Travel, Cruising, Ecotourism, expeditionary cruising, International Travel, Outdoors Adventures, Wildlife Adventure

Cruising on the Galapagos Legend: Santiago Island

October 15, 2022 krubin723 2 Comments

*In Sullivan Bay, exploring this newly formed (350 years old) lava landscape on our second day of a four-day cruise aboard the Galapagos Legend © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

By Karen Rubin, Dave E. Leiberman, Laini Miranda, Eric Leiberman & Sarah Falter

Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

On the second day of the four-day cruise aboard the Galapagos Legend, we sail on to Santiago island. Early in the morning, after a talk about snorkeling and getting outfitted with our gear, we have a dry landing at Bartolome island just off Santiago.

We climb a long boardwalk, 372-steps, over a barren landscape that evokes a moonscape, up to the summit for an iconic view overlooking the famous Pinnacle Rock and Santiago Island. On the way up, we get to see sea lions frolicking (courting, perhaps?) with each other, and on the way down, one perches on a deck, perhaps putting on a show for us, until another literally pushes it off (wanting attention?).

*Sea lions frolicking as we arrive on Bartolome island © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

When Darwin visited here on October 5, 1835, he encountered Spaniards who came to catch tortoises for food; he also found many land iguana which today are extinct. Goats, pigs and donkeys were released on the island in the 1800s, “causing havoc for the island ecosystem and many of its native species,” the Galapagos Conservancy, a US-based nonprofit, notes. “Goats destroy habitat, cause massive erosion, and compete with native herbivores, including the giant tortoise. Pigs dig up both giant tortoise and sea turtle nests and destroy both eggs and hatchlings, dig into Galapagos petrel nests in the highlands, and destroy other ground-nesting birds. Donkeys are particularly destructive to Opuntia cactus in the arid zones. The presence of these species on Santiago had created an ecosystem very different from the pristine condition.” (https://www.galapagos.org/about_galapagos/the-islands/)

*Bartolome island © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Today there are programs to eradicate the goats, which have provoked ire from animal rights groups. “Which would you prefer,” our guide, Billy, challenges, “penguins or goats? Penguins or cats? Flightless cormorants or dogs? We are sorry for animal-loving people” but the Galapagos has made its choice.

*The summit of Bartolome island provides an iconic view © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

*One sea lion seems to resent the other sea lion which has been putting on a show for us© Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Then we ride in the dinghy along the coast where we get a glimpse of the Galapagos penguin (one of 18 penguin species but the only one found this close to the Equator).

*Getting a scenic view © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

We are returned to a beach on Santiago Island to snorkel and explore for an hour. (Those who don’t want to snorkel can take a 12-passenger glass bottom boat to observe the marine life). Naturalist Alejandro, who is also a Galapagos National Park ranger, tells us to look for sea turtles, rays, maybe a small reef shark and the Galapagos penguin. (Karen is so happy with her Olympus Tough6 waterproof, shockproof camera, though David got excellent video with his cellphone in a waterproof pouch).

*Snorkeling on Bartolome island © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

It is amazing to literally share the beach with sea lions. This also provides an opportunity to see the extraordinary Galapagos penguins; Sarah gets to swim with one. One of our group (we are Albatross; the other group is Booby) actually sees a white-tipped reef shark as he snorkels.

*Enjoying alfresco dining onboard the Galapagos Legend © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

In the afternoon after a wonderful lunch, we have a dry landing off the dinghy and into the water at Sullivan Bay (Santiago Island) – a fascinating geologic site of a relatively “young” pa-hoe-hoe lava flow that came from 10 km away. It is like being dropped into a sculpture of black swirls and shapes – an absolutely stunning and dramatic landscape. Billy explains the black is because of oxidation but the layers underneath still have the original reddish-mustard color.

*Landing at Sullivan Bay © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Billy says that when Darwin visited this very place, he estimated it formed only 200 years before and was spot on because scientists believe this land mass is a mere 350 years old. Now it seems virtually devoid of life – a moonscape – though when we look more carefully, we see the very beginnings of life taking hold: small mollugo plants beginning to grow out of fissures, a cactus, a locust flying by.

*Exploring the lava field at Sullivan Bay © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

There is no organic soil, no water, the food chain is poor, but that locust eats the little bush and drinks its liquid and becomes food for lava lizards. This is like what Galapagos would have been at the beginning, just the top of volcano above the surface and nothing living, he says.

*Exploring the lava field at Sullivan Bay, like being plopped into a sculpture © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

We are already witnessing the process of how the surface material will be broken down by lichens and eventually become soil.

Lichens are key to “terraforming” this barren landscape. “Look for moisture from steam coming out from fissures – that’s where lichens colonized.” The lichens crack the rock and turn it into organic soil that can support a plant or tree. Come back in 500 years, he says, and there will be life.

*A tiny cactus grows in the lava rock © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

*This little locust, the only animal we see, plays a major role in turning this barren landscape into one that can sustain an ecosystem © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

*Lichens taking hold in the lava rock will ultimately help break it down into soil © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Billy tells us there used to be coal mining here, but after the National Park was established, the company was evicted. Today, the government has resisted permitting any kind of drilling, mining – for fresh water or for any of the valuable minerals that are likely in these islands, nor any of the resort or real estate development companies that would pay a small fortune for the rights to establish themselves here. The government has resisted all offers in order to preserve the Galapagos, “Nature’s Greatest Laboratory.”

“We know the Ecuador government has pressure to build resort hotels. But Galapagos has been a UNESCO Heritage site since 1978 – even if a corrupt government would want to sell, it cannot. Politically and geographically, Galapagos belongs to Ecuador, but culturally, Galapagos belongs to world.” But a lot of celebrities and billionaires have been so moved by their experience, they deposit hefty checks on their way home. “Bill Gates wrote a check for $5 million and left it at one station.”

*Mother Nature’s artwork at Sullivan Bay © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Sullivan Bay was made famous because “Master & Commander” was filmed here – but the images of the ship were all digitized because the only boats allowed in the Galapagos have to come from here. Also, all the wood that is used to build boardwalks has to be already cut down – no living trees can be cut.

Back on board, Alejandro gives a talk about how the weather and currents are responsible for the unique life found in the Galapagos, and why, only in the Galapagos, can you see sea lions, penguins, tuna with parrot fish, angel fish and flamingoes.

From December through May, the water temperature (avg. 76°F/25°C) and air temperature (avg. low/high 72-86°F/22-30°C) are slightly warmer. Seas tend to be calmer. Rainfalls are common for a short period of time each day, but the remainder of the day tends to be very sunny resulting in high humidity. Flowers come into bloom and vegetation is more colorful. This is a good time to observe birds mating or sea turtles nesting on the beaches.

*Naturalist Alejandro explains how hot and cold currents converging at the Galapagos Islands accounts for the extraordinary diversity of life © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

From June through November, when we visit, the Humboldt Current brings colder water (avg. 72°F/22°C) and cooler land temperatures (avg. low/high 66-79°F/19-26°C) It also brings nutrient-rich water that attracts fish and sea birds: albatross arrive on Española and penguins are easier to encounter. This is the mating season for blue-footed boobies. During this time of year clouds fill the sky and a misty rain called Garua is common. Winds tend to be stronger and seas a bit rougher. The abundant marine life makes this the preferred time of year for experienced divers.

Alejandro tells us that the sunny, blue skies we have had are unusual for this time of year (late August).

Back on board the Galapagos Legend, we thoroughly enjoy relaxing on the deck, hanging out together – there are two hot tubs and a nice-sized pool, plus a fitness center, a library, a children’s playroom, and a gorgeous lounge where coffee, tea, hot chocolate and fresh fruit are always available.

*The Galapagos Legend cruise affords time and space to relax © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

The M/V Galapagos Legend has 52 ocean view, air-conditioned cabins plus 3 interior ones, each cabin which can accommodate a matrimonial, double, triple or quadruple option, accommodating 100 passengers. The Balcony suites have private balconies and panoramic windows. The Junior suites have three meters of panoramic windows. Housekeeping is provided twice daily. You can use US plugs, and US currency. Our cabins on the Earth deck are gorgeous and spacious and can easily accommodate a triple.

The ship is large enough to feel very comfortable and have all the amenities you would want in a luxury cruise, but small enough to feel intimate.

The cuisine on board is superb (we especially love the BBQ banquet served alfresco on deck), how we are greeted on the return from our excursions and snorkeling with hot chocolate or tea and a snack, and how coffee, tea and fresh fruit are always available.

There are special touches: we absolutely adore the electronic key-bracelets we wear throughout our stay (even snorkeling) so you never have to fish for a key; how they keep track that everyone is onboard with a computerized check-in. (You can purchase beer or wine packages; wet suits are $25 to rent; kayaks are $40 pp, and you can purchase access to wifi.)

More information: Go Galapagos by Kleintours, 1-888 50 KLEIN, www.GoGalapagos.com.

Next: Our Voyage on the Galapagos Legend Continues to San Cristobal

SANTA CRUZ ISLAND IS WONDER-FUL START TO GALAPAGOS ADVENTURE

CRUISING ON THE GALAPAGOS LEGEND: SAN CRISTOBAL ISLAND

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© 2022 Travel Features Syndicate, a division of Workstyles, Inc. All rights reserved. Visit goingplacesfarandnear.com, www.huffingtonpost.com/author/karen-rubin, and travelwritersmagazine.com/TravelFeaturesSyndicate/. Blogging at goingplacesnearandfar.wordpress.com and moralcompasstravel.info. Visit instagram.com/going_places_far_and_near and instagram.com/bigbackpacktraveler/ Send comments or questions to FamTravLtr@aol.com. Tweet @TravelFeatures. ‘Like’ us at facebook.com/NewsPhotoFeatures

Adventure Travel, Cruising, Ecotourism, expeditionary cruising, Family Travel, Where to Go Next, Wildlife adventures

Cruising on The Galapagos Legend: A Voyage of Wonder

October 14, 2022 krubin723 3 Comments

Remarkably, this land iguana unfazed by the humans exploring North Seymour island, Galapagos, on the first afternoon of a four-day cruise aboard the Galapagos Legend © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

By Karen Rubin, Dave E. Leiberman, Laini Miranda, Eric Leiberman & Sarah Falter

Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

*The Galapagos Legend anchored while we explore North Seymour Island, Galapagos, on the first afternoon of our four-day/three-night cruise © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

The Galapagos, an archipelago of some 200 islands spanning 8000 sq km just below the Equator and 600 miles from South America’s coast – has the most varied ecosystems and diversity in such a concentrated area on the planet.

You see animals and floral life that don’t exist anywhere else in the world – not even from one island to the next. It’s the only place in the world you can see sea lions, penguins and albacore tuna with parrot fish, angel fish and flamingoes.

We get so close because here, animals do not have a fear of humans because humans are no longer their predators. Most profound, is how vividly we can see the impacts of the environment on the evolution of a species, right down to their blue or red booby feet and the red sac that expands like a balloon on the male frigate bird’s neck. We see mating rituals, newborn chicks, adolescence and death. We get to swim with sea turtles and sea lions.

The best way to experience the Galapagos – a place that can only be described as “enchanting,” “mesmerizing,” “awe-inspiring” – is by ship. We book a four-day/three-night cruise on the 100-passenger MV Galapagos Legend, a gorgeous ship big enough to afford all the luxury amenities you could crave and small enough to be intimate. Go Galapagos, the operator, offers four itineraries (longer itineraries are available by combining sailings) and we choose the “East” which seems to afford less time sailing (in this time of year, we are concerned about rougher seas) and more time exploring islands, hiking, snorkeling and seeing a good portion of the wildlife that the Galapagos is most famous for.

*Remarkably, this land iguana completely ignores the humans © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Each of the destinations we visit is so different – in landscape, geology, wildlife, vegetation – that the experience we have changes drastically from morning to afternoon and day to day.

This Galapagos cruise proves to be the perfect combination of pure excitement and pure enjoyment. It is the very definition of “soft adventure” – giving us the ability to experience something really exotic, unique, remote and isolated, but in absolute comfort, adding the priceless dimension of being an experience that can be shared by a family, young and old.

After spending a couple of days on Santa Cruz island, we meet up with the rest of our cruise passengers for this sailing of the Galapagos Legend at the international airport on the adjacent island (a US Naval Base in World War II), and are taken by bus to a small marina where we are tendered by dinghy to the ship.

It is still morning when we go aboard for a “captain’s welcome” have an excellent orientation to the ship and the cruise, and then have lunch as the ship sails to the first island we explore. (A short, easy sail, it gives us time to acclimate.)

We have two naturalists on board, Alejandro and Billy, rangers who work for the Galapagos National Park. They not only guide us, but are responsible for making sure the strict rules that protect the ecosystems are enforced. (You can’t visit the islands on your own, and even the operators and cruise ships are limited in the number of people that can be anywhere at any one time.)

*Frigatebird in flight over North Seymour, Galapagos © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

The Galapagos became Ecuador’s first national park in 1959 and began operations in 1968, with tourism really getting underway in the 1970s. In 1979, UNESCO declared the Galápagos Islands a Natural Heritage for Humanity site, making the Park Service responsible for guarding and conserving the islands.

*Keeping to the marked trail on North Seymour to minimize impact to the Galapagos ecosystem © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Alejandro tells us the rules that are in place to protect the animals, too many of which have been endangered by invasive species including rats, cats, dogs and most significantly, humans.

We are instructed to stay on the marked trails and not stray or go off on our own, not to bring any food (water is okay), not to use the camera flash (light is too strong and would stress the animal) or selfie stick. We must not take anything from the island, not a shell, not sand nor stone. “Keep it as natural as possible, with the least human impact, so we have this for future generations.” But the Galapagos already has clear examples of how fast human impact can set into motion the extinction of species.

*North Seymour island is fabulous to see birds of the Galapagos © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

The mystery is how these animals even came here to begin with. They are said to have evolved from animals that managed to get here from North and South America – but the most eastern island, San Cristobal, is still 600 miles from South America’s coast. They tell us how an iguana could have floated here on some sort of “raft”-like vehicle, which Karen comprehends about as well as the “Big Bang” theory of the universe exploding from a ball of matter that could fit in the palm of your hand.

(Think of it: an iguana would have to survive weeks at sea with swells and storms without food or water, arrive on an island and somehow meet a fertile animal of the opposite sex in a timely way in order to reproduce. It sounds about as credible as Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden having two sons but being the progenitors of all humankind. After Billy later explains about teutonic plates that move 2 meters a year, west to east, and how these islands actually floated here, Karen is more inclined to think that these animals’ evolutionary ancestors were already onboard.)

The oldest islands are in the East (San Cristobal) and are 3 million years old; the youngest islands are in the west and are one million years old, and actually moving eastward at a rate of two meters a year. But, Billy tells us, an island would “disappear” before it reached South America’s coast (!!??). (Actually, Karen thinks the island would more likely disappear – and sooner – because of climate-caused sea-level rise, which makes her worry about the fate of these animals.)

*A dry landing on North Seymour © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Our first walkabout is that afternoon, on the island of North Seymour, a bird lover’s dream. The dinghy takes us to a “dry” landing which means we step onto slick rocks (they put down a towel to make it easier). We spend about two-hours (is it that long? Time flies by) walking a rocky – but easy – trail that makes us feel like we are strolling through Wonderland.

*Seeing a young frigatebird in its nest © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

Because humans are not perceived as a threat, the animals pay us no attention. We can walk amazingly close to bird colonies, even to chicks still in the nest, as if we were invisible; they just continue doing what they will do. And yet, we later have experiences where it seems the sea lions do want to attract our attention, show off and even play with us, and on one occasion, a blue-footed booby (adolescent?) seems curious enough to just stand in the middle of the trail as we take photos, study us, and wait for us until we come back.

*North Seymour is fabulous for sightings of the blue booby © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

“Two things make Galapagos unique,” our guide, Billy, tells us. “Fear doesn’t exist and there is harmony – the hawk, boobies, iguana live in harmony [balance] because there is enough food to eat.” He tells us that the government gave fishermen an incentive to become guides, so there is less fishing and more for the animals. “Harmony and no fear.”

*A male frigatebird in flight © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

North Seymour is fantastic because we see several of the birds the Galapagos are so famous for– the blue-footed booby, the magnificent frigatebird (the largest colony in the Galapagos is here), swallow-tailed gulls; also land iguana (2500 are resident here). And we see them all! It is thrilling for us to see a blue-footed booby for real (the males use their webbed feet to attract a prospective mate, but when we go to San Cristobal, we see the red-footed booby, where red proved more enticing).

We also see boxes used to trap the rats (that came with humans) that were endangering the rest of the native species.

We get to see the great frigatebird males courting the females by clicking, bill-clapping shuddering and flapping their wings, while puffing up their bright red, gular pouch, as big as a balloon. Billy tells us it’s late in the season, so this is their last chance to mate.

*A male frigatebird puffs up like a red balloon to appeal to a mate while fending off competition © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

We see frigatebird chicks in all stages of development. Billy tells us that the female lays only one at a time, and one of the two parents have to cover it or it will die from the heat, while the other goes fishing. When it hatches, if the parent doesn’t feed it, it will die. The parent is also responsible for cleaning the chick. “The very young need more protection than food, the older ones need more food than protection.”

We see a blue-footed booby chick in the nest. Billy tells us that the female lays 3 eggs, 12 days apart, so they hatch at different times after 28 days of incubation. The oldest is the largest and takes food first so has a 100 percent chance of survival; the second is smaller, so can’t outdo the eldest for food, and has a 50 percent chance; the third is the smallest, and has only a 25 percent chance of surviving. If there is enough food, all will survive. “In the nest, there is natural selection for the strongest and fittest.”

*A dead chick is a lesson in survival of the fittest and natural selection © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

We also see death – a dead booby chick. Billy tells us that if he sees a booby chick fall out of the nest, the ranger isn’t allowed to help it and it will die. “It means the chick has a balance problem, and if it mates and reproduces, that trait will be inherited and would be the result of the ranger’s mistake. That individual should die before it reproduces. That’s natural selection.”

*A dead bird is a lesson in survival of the fittest and natural selection © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

When you are here, you realize what an ecosystem is – the cooperation and competition that is required for survival.

We come upon a land iguana (they survived here but went extinct on Baltra), which is unfazed as groups of us stand over it. I’m fascinated by its delicately formed hands and feet that look so human, and yet, this isn’t just a different species but a different genus, reptilian.

*A male frigatebird puffs up like a red balloon to appeal to a mate © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com*

There aren’t any hummingbirds here, Billy says, because there isn’t the kind of vegetation that hummingbirds require – a lesson that “Prey and predators have to colonize together or one or the other disappears.”

The humans who began arriving in the Galapagos in the 17^th century were predators also, engaged in the fight for their own survival. Without food or fresh water, they relied on giant sea turtles and tortoises. “They could survive for 6 months with meat and water from a sea turtle –the turtle was their supermarket for hundreds of years.”

More information: Go Galapagos by Kleintours, 1-888 50 KLEIN, www.GoGalapagos.com.

Next: Our Voyage on the Galapagos Legend Continues to Santiago

SANTA CRUZ ISLAND IS WONDER-FUL START TO GALAPAGOS ADVENTURE

CRUISING ON THE GALAPAGOS LEGEND: SANTIAGO ISLAND

CRUISING ON THE GALAPAGOS LEGEND: SAN CRISTOBAL ISLAND

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